Pokemon - Broken Bonds
by LadyCharizard
Summary: The Thorndykes are on holiday in Unova, visiting Hayden's little sister, Hailey and her family. However, there's no rest for the wicked as a botched up Pokemon Contest appeal raises suspicion. Is it just an accident? Or was another co-ordinator trying to eliminate the competition..? Meanwhile, will Keith and Alexa be able to rekindle their romance? Or is their fire already dead?
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One – Visiting Relatives pt 1**

A distressed shriek echoed through the desolate countryside as a giant Golurk raced through the air, with a large burst of bright orange fire released from its lower body where its legs once were. The blonde princess continued to scream loudly as she sat in one of Golurk's large palms, struggling violently against her bonds. Atop Golurk's head was a sinister looking man, dressed entirely in black clothing; he twiddled his thin black moustache with a finger proudly as he seemed to enjoy the princess's agonised cries. Racing across the grass underneath Golurk was a stunningly beautiful Arcanine, with the rider on its back looking up at the villain angrily.

"Faster, Arcanine, intercept that brutish miscreant and his Pokémon!" the hero demanded furiously.

"Arf!" With a compliant nod, Arcanine increased his pace and sped past Golurk at a blinding speed, which even left a trail of white light behind him. Arcanine soon turned around and faced the traversing golem head on.

"Now, stop it! Flamethrower should do it!"

"ARRRRRR!" Arcanine's breath of fire zoomed towards the giant Pokémon and collided with its chest. The villain very nearly lost his balancing, flailing around on one foot in a supposedly very comical fashion on Golurk's head, but the hero's plan worked; Golurk indeed stopped and merely hovered in mid-air. The princess looked euphoric upon noticing the hero that intercepted her captor's Pokémon.

"Waylon!" she cried merrily. The villain snarled furiously and stomped his foot in anger.

"You again?! But I thought I destroyed you!"

"You were wrong, Slade! My Arcanine protected me with his Flash Fire ability; your little trap meant absolutely nothing to him!" Waylon announced as he glared at his adversary. "Let Princess Melody go, you vile cur!"

"Never! You know something, Waylon, you're really beginning to annoy me. What, with your stupid leotard and everything...what are you trying to pull off, the male ballet dancer look?"

"Hah! You cannot hurt MY feelings with an insult as pitiful as you yourself!" Waylon declared boldly. "You, sir, are a fool! Release the princess right now, you're fighting a losing battle!"

"Yes, I am; and it is YOU who is losing this fight!" Slade smirked. "Golurk, lay the smack down on this goody-two-shoes FOR GOOD!"

"Golurk.." Golurk mumbled as its flames died out and were replaced with its legs. Golurk landed on its feet and lifted the hostage in its palm up to its master.

"Now, Hammer Arm!" Slade instructed as he held onto his captive. "Brace yourself, my dear, this is going to be a bumpy ride," he teased.

"Walyon, watch out!" Princess Melody screamed. Golurk's fist shone in a blinding white light and slammed it hard onto the ground, creating a large ditch in the earth as a result. However, Arcanine instinctively leapt away from Golurk's fist and ran up its arm, Waylon still sitting on Arcanine's back.

"Golurk, you nincompoop, squash him!" Slade yelled furiously. Golurk raised its other hand, aiming to slam it down on top of Waylon and Arcanine. Arcanine, however, leapt away from Golurk's heavy palm and towards Slade and Princess Melody. Slade's grip on the princess loosened as he came face to face with Arcanine's snarling face, but Waylon grabbed her and pulled her onto Arcanine's back before she fell. Arcanine leapt down from Golurk's shoulder, twirled in mid-air and exhaled a larger stream of fire, which burned more fiercely than his previous attack, and even grew into a large five-pointed star-like shape that struck Golurk's back. Golurk fell to the ground in defeat as Arcanine landed on his feet. Slade recovered from the fall as Waylon proceeded to untie Princess Melody. Slade glared at his enemy as he saw Princess Melody flinging herself into Waylon's arms. Being gentlemanly, Waylon returned the princess's embrace.

"You may have defeated me yet again, Waylon," Slade began, returning the defeated titan into a grey Poké Ball with blue lumps on top, replacing it with a Honckrow he released from a black and green Poké Ball. "But I will see to it that this kingdom falls..INTO MY HANDS!" he cackled maniacally as he grabbed the ankles of his flying Honchkrow, lifting him up into the air and eventually out of sight.

"Oh, thank you, brave Waylon," Princess Melody thanked gracefully. "You're my hero!"

"And I shall be your hero forever and always," Waylon smiled. "My dear sweet Melody, my rose in the garden...will you marry me?"

"Yes! Yes, I will!" Princess Melody replied, eyes streaming with tears of joy. Arcanine ran off into the sunset gently as Waylon and his royal fiancé shared a tender kiss. Everything faded to black, and the words "A Hero's Rising" appeared from the darkness, in fancy pink and red medieval font.

Many people exited the movie theatre, most of them grumbling and muttering with disappointment and disgust. They passed many posters advertising different movies, one of which was advertising "A Hero's Rising", and depicted the characters Waylon, Princess Melody and Slade on the poster. Even the little children within the exiting crowd were disappointed, some of whom were even in tears. Among the last to leave the theatre was Alexa, who seemed to be too depressed to care about the horrifically clichéd and poorly written film she had viewed with her family; her parents, Hayden and Lily, and her little brother, Keenan. In addition to her parents and brother were two other people; the woman was a lavender eyed pale blonde woman – with her hair initially tied into a ponytail, which was then divided into two smaller ponytails – wearing an oddly casual attire of a plain and simple white T-shirt and black leggings and black heeled shoes. The little girl holding her hand was a small child – a few years younger than Keenan – with medium auburn hair – tied in a pigtail, lavender eyes and dressed in a cute pink dress with a daisy print on the chest, white knee high socks and black shoes. Around her neck was a round pearl amulet and flying near her shoulder was a red eyed Swablu.

"Huh; I could've sworn the movie was going to be better than it actually was," the woman began. "Especially considering that was Troy's Golurk in that movie... Sorry about that, bro."

"Don't worry about it, Hailey," Hayden smiled. "I, personally enjoyed the company."

"Me, too," Lily agreed. "But, no offence, the film was pretty terrible..."

"I didn't like it," the little girl sighed. "I could tell what was going to happen before it happened..."

"It's all right, Peggy," Hailey grinned, ruffling her daughter's hair a little. "If it makes you feel better, we can watch one of your DVDs at home." Peggy smiled a little.

"I quite enjoyed it, actually," Keenan commented. Alexa raised an eyebrow at her younger brother and was about to question his enjoyment. "It was so utterly bad it was hilarious!" Hayden chuckled.

"Don't let the director hear you say that, kiddo!" With a slight hint of worry about him, Hayden looked towards Alexa, who kept both hands in her pocket, which wasn't normal for her to do. "What did you think, sweetie?"

"Eh," Alexa just shrugged. "I didn't pay much attention, if any," she said plainly. Hayden and Lily looked at one another worriedly; they were concerned about whether or not the final scene of the movie reminded her of...

"Hey, come on, chin up!" Hailey said optimistically as she placed an arm around Alexa's shoulder and pulled her close. "So it was a bad movie; big deal! There are better ones out there, you just need to keep digging and avoid picking up the fool's gold!"

"Uh, thanks, Aunt Hailey," Alexa smiled nervously.

"No problem, honey," Hailey winked. "Anyway, Hayden, would you like to come back to my home for a couple of hours? I don't know when the hotel restaurant's opening..."

"From six o'clock in the evening," Lily answered.

"What do you kids think?" Hayden asked politely. Keenan smiled and nodded, but Alexa shrugged with a declining smile. "I think that's a yes on that. Thank you, Hailey."

"No problem! Besides, you're my big brother-okay, one of my big brothers, how could I not invite you over? You know how much I love you guys..." Hayden laughed.

"You know the feeling's mutual. At any rate, I think we should leave before we end up spending the night in front of the theatre," Hayden chuckled. Hailey laughed.

"Yeah, you're right. Let's go." Hailey led Hayden, Lily, Peggy and Keenan away from the theatre. Alexa sighed and followed everyone slowly, lagging behind them slightly.

Hailey led her brother and his family into her home, Peggy being the first one to enter the house with her Swablu in close pursuit. The family home looked pleasantly quaint and tidy, and everyone was only in a corridor of the house.

"Hey, why don't Keenan and Alexa go play with Peggy for a while?" Hailey suggested. "Colin's still at the opticians with the twins; they're having an eye test. The twins, I mean, not Colin; he had his eye test last week."

"Sure, why not?" Alexa smiled.

"Good! This way, this way!" Peggy said enthusiastically as she led her cousins up the stairs to her bedroom. Hailey laughed.

"You know, Peggy still doesn't say Alexa's name correctly," she said spontaneously as she led her brother and sister-in-law to the kitchen. The kitchen looked rather modernised in comparison to Lily's; the appliances were needlessly large, with the dishwasher disguised as another kitchen cupboard with its medium oak door. The oven and stove combo was midnight black, the pans and pots were neatly stacked above the overhead kitchen cupboards, the the tall silver fridge-freezer stood near the back door. The floor beneath the adults was a smooth blue tiled floor, in the middle of which was a rounded table with a bowl of faux flowers as the centrepiece. Hailey took the black kettle off of its base and moved it to the kitchen tap, where she filled it with fresh water.

"I think it's intentional at this stage," Hayden began. "She couldn't say Alexa's name very well when she was younger, but I think she's grown used to calling her Lexa that it became her own little 'nickname' for her."

"Yeah, I think so, too," Hailey agreed as she returned the filled kettle to its base and pressed the silver coloured button on the handle to turn it on, causing the interior to shine in a blue light as the water began to boil. Hailey then searched through some of the cupboards for three mugs, a jar of teabags, a tub of sweetener and a box of cappuccino sachets. "Lily, yours is tea, right?"

"Yes, please, thank you," Lily replied. She suddenly sighed and sat down at the table. Hayden sat next to her. "Actually, Hailey, I'll just have what you're having..."

"A cappuccino? Okay, if you say so," Hailey said with slight concern. She put the jar of teabags and sweetener tub back where she found them, ripped open three cappuccino sachets and poured the contents into the mugs, one sachet per mug. "Is Alexa okay? She's not usually so...distant," Hailey asked as she prematurely deactivated the kettle; the blue glow had since turned magenta in hue, indicating the water's closeness to boiling. She poured an approximate equal amount of hot water in each mug and stirred the frothy coffee for all three.

"That's what Lily and I ought to tell you about," Hayden sighed as Hailey placed a mug of cappuccino on the coasters near him and Lily. Hailey took hold of her mug, which was a rather amusing mug; it was a red mug with the words 'Caution; contents may be hot' in large white text around it. "You know who Keith is, right?"

"Yeah, what about him?" Hailey asked as she sat down in front of her brother.

"Keith and Alexa...have pretty much broken up," Hayden said reluctantly.

"Oh, gosh...! No wonder the girl's not quite all there! I'm sorry!" Hailey said sympathetically. "But why 'pretty much'?"

"Because there was no declaration that they had officially broken up," Lily replied as she held her green and white polka dot mug to her lips and consumed some of the cappuccino. Hailey looked at Lily worriedly; she knew Lily preferred tea over coffee, and only drinks coffee to calm her nerves, though the prospect didn't make much sense to Hailey.

"I see...I think."

"Basically, neither Keith nor Alexa said anything along the lines of "we're through" or "we're finished" or anything like that," Lily explained.

"Oh."

"I'm just glad Alexa agreed to come with us for this holiday," Lily admitted. "I think she could benefit from being away from Keith for a while, but I didn't think she'd agree to it because she doesn't like the idea of her 'time off' outweighing her 'on duty' time, if that makes sense..."

"Right; I remember you telling me she was adamant about not having any time off over something," Hailey said quietly.

"It's not that," Hayden replied. "She didn't want to be taken off duty for 'mental health' reasons."

"Say what?"

"During the whole Jordan situation, things have happened which put quite a strain on her, which, in turn, affected her relationship with Keith," Hayden explained. "They fought more than once."

"Oh, gosh..."

"And that's only the beginning; her Staraptor almost died, Keenan had his accident, Alexa was ambushed and there was the Mt Silver avalanche to boot," Hayden elaborated. "I think the stress from the mission was still around her mind when she left the hospital, and I don't think her relationship with Keith really escaped unharmed after Jordan's crimes drove a wedge between them on several occasions."

"So what happened that made them 'pretty much' break up?" Hailey asked as she finally took a drink from her mug.

"Alexa was incredibly sketchy on the details," Lily explained as Hayden drank his coffee. "Then again, neither Hayden nor myself asked for any further information than what she gave us; she came home in tears."

"Aw, the poor thing! Um, by 'home', do you mean the Chicole Village one?"

"Yes," Lily confirmed.

"I'm thinking of selling the house there," Hayden stated. "I mean, why do we need a home in Almia when Alexa can come home to Johto via Teleport whenever she feels like it and/or needs to?"

"Good point," Lily smiled nervously. "Especially she's now rekindled her friendship with Lupin."

"Aww, that's good to hear!" Hailey smiled.

"It is. Except Lupin is now one of the few Pokémon who bear a grudge against Keith," Hayden sighed.

"He and Alexa had another argument, you see. From what we could gather, it was rather heated," Lily continued. "I don't know what Keith said to her before she ran away from him, but it really crushed her feelings and – as we discovered a couple days later – her self-esteem."

"That explains why she couldn't appreciate how bad the film was anyway," Hailey said quietly.

"We contacted Erma, being Alexa's boss – not Professor Hastings as some people would speculate – and she told us it would be better if Alexa was off duty until she feels like her proper self again," Lily added.

"Alexa was in a bad mood with us for days once we told her what Erma said to us; she hardly left her room during that time, trying to ask Rhythmi to convince Erma to reconsider her decision. But, eventually, Alexa accepted Erma's recommendation and, well...you know the rest."

"Well I just hope this holiday will do her some good," Hailey smiled kindly.

"We do as well," Lily smiled. "Like I said, she needs the space away from Keith, and I think he'll benefit from the time apart from Alexa as well."

"He doesn't know where you're all having your holiday, does he?" Hailey asked.

"I don't know if Alexa said anything to him," Lily replied with uncertainty. "It's something we'll need to ask her at some point."

"It's just that he might try to find her and intrude on your fun," Hailey replied.

"If he's here because he knows Alexa's here, he's got to go through me first if he wants to see her," Hayden said grumpily.

"Whoa, Defensive Dad mode right there," Hailey said with slight shock.

"To be honest, my trust in Keith has been affected since the arguments began," Hayden confessed. "I know she still cares about him deep down, but he hurt her feelings; I can't forgive anyone who hurts my family, intentionally or otherwise."

"Hayden..." Lily placed her hand on top of his, providing some sort of comfort for her husband.

"But my family is my priority; at this moment in time, Keith doesn't matter to me," Hayden added, rather coldly. "Between him and Alexa, my daughter comes first without fail."

"That's not surprising; she is your daughter," Hailey agreed. "I'd be in the same mindset if Daphne or Peggy were in Alexa's predicament."

"As parents, our responsibility is to our children," Lily said. "Hayden and I will definitely do whatever we can do to help Alexa through this, regardless of what the outcome will be."

"I hope Alexa's going to be okay."

"So do we, Hailey," Hayden nodded.

Alexa, Keenan and Peggy lay in the middle of Peggy's bedroom, each with a white piece of paper in front of them and a large assortment of colouring pencils, some erasers and pencil sharpeners in front of them; all three of them were happily drawing something on their paper. Keenan was in the process of drawing the Dragonair he saw during the boat ride back to Puel Harbour after Keith, Alexa and Hayden brought the bloodthirsty Cain to justice; his drawing, in terms of quality, appeared to be average at best, but the colouring of the picture was the best part of Keenan's drawing, as the colours he used for the sunset blended beautifully well with one another, and the shading on the Dragonair looked incredibly soft. Peggy was in the middle of drawing what was on her mind; a princess and what appeared to be a Beautifly was battling against the villain and what looked like a Garchomp, with a stick figure that was supposed to represent the main hero standing behind the princess in complete confusion. Peggy added a round orange and black figure to the drawing that was supposedly depicting an Arcanine taking a nap. Peggy's drawing was rather crudely drawn, with not much detail being given to anything she drew; the humans were stick figures with slight, albeit significant, features that differentiated them from one another, such as the crown on the princess's head, and the Pokémon were drawn very roughly, with their body shapes being approximate, but their colours being either one or two colours, rather than their proper colour schemes. The castle in the background of the picture looked rather squared and was oddly coloured pink. Alexa's drawing was nothing more than a Manaphy swimming in the ocean. Her drawing wasn't coloured, contrary to Keenan or Peggy's drawings; her colouring and additional shading was all done with the pencil she used to sketch Manaphy out in the first place. The quality of the drawing was pretty decent; Alexa captured the light source perfectly and her single stroke shading reflected the light source wonderfully, yet the Manaphy's expression of loneliness was painfully obvious to anyone who looked at the sketch, especially considering that Alexa hadn't drawn anything else in the ocean with the Manaphy. And considering that Peggy's bedroom was absolutely pink in almost every aspect, Alexa's drawing could even be considered a complete mood killer. Peggy caught a glimpse of Alexa's sketch of the lonely Manaphy and looked up at Alexa worriedly.

"Lexa? Are you okay?" she asked. Keenan momentarily stopped what he was doing and looked at his sister with concern.

"I'm fine," Alexa replied, giving her youngest cousin a weak – and unconvincing – smile. She resumed her shading, occasionally using the eraser on the other end of her pencil to smudge the lead.

"You don't look it," Peggy said. "Was someone being mean to you?" Alexa laughed a little.

"It's nothing, don't worry about it." Keenan wondered how Alexa could lie there smiling and claim that she was all right when her sketch was an indication that she was anything but all right. All he could do was trust that Alexa would seek solace from their parents if she truly needed it and carried on with his colouring, occasionally using his finger to help his colours blend.

An hour later, three people entered the house through the front door. Two of them were young teenagers who looked remarkably similar: they both had dark copper hair – the girl's being long and wavy, and the boy's being short and tidy, but both with the same style fringe – and they both wore near-identical glasses over their eyes. Her left eye was lavender and her left eye was brown, but his left eye was brown and his right was lavender. Around the girl's head was a pair of Poké Ball themed headphones attached to a black MP3 player with a blue silicone skin around it, with the very faint sound of a rock song coming from the headphones. Meanwhile, the boy carried a book entitled "Night of the Clefairy Dance" in his hand. She looked joyfully tuned into her music, but he showed no real concern for anything. Their father, on the other hand, was a slightly pale brunette individual who also wore glasses around his brown eyes and, oddly enough, carried a small pen in one of his blue shirt pockets and a small mechanical pencil in the other.

"Honey, we're home!" the man announced. Hailey approached the man happily.

"Hi, Colin, how was everything at the opticians?"

"They're fine, there's nothing wrong," Colin replied. "Though, between you and me," he began, lowering his voice to a whisper. "Daniel's been rather moody since I told him about Hayden's visit."

"I can hear you, Dad," Daniel sighed. Hayden and Lily approached Hailey from the kitchen.

"Oh, hi, Colin," Lily smiled. Colin smiled back at Lily and Hayden.

"Hello there! How was the movie?" he asked.

"How should I put this..? Bad," Hayden replied.

"I'm not surprised; I read the review in the newspaper while I was waiting for Daphne to come back from her examination," Colin chuckled. Daphne pulled her headphones down to her neck; the music could be heard very slightly from them.

"Told you they should have gone to see Brycenman," she laughed.

"Oh, please; Brycenman's nothing more than a stupidly cliché superhero movie with corny dialogue in every scene," Daniel complained.

"Compared to A Hero's Rising, though, it's a masterpiece," Daphne grinned.

"Have you even seen those two back to back?" Daniel asked.

"Why, have YOU?" Daphne teased. Daniel groaned as Alexa, Keenan and Peggy walked down the stairs. "Peggy!"

"Daphne, Danny!" Peggy smiled as she ran over to her brother and sister.

"You all right, Pegs?" Daphne asked. Peggy nodded.

"We've been drawing in my room! Cousin Keenan did a pretty Dratini!"

"Dragonair," Keenan corrected with a sheepish smile.

"Oh, yeah? I'll have to look at that soon," Daphne winked. Daniel looked up at his cousins.

"Keenan, Alexa."

"Daniel," Alexa and Keenan responded in unison. Hayden looked towards his children.

"Just so you know, we're going back to the hotel now," he stated.

"Okay, dad," Keenan smiled as he walked down the stairs. Alexa followed him, and Daniel noticed her lacking enthusiasm.

"Who poured vinegar in your cereal this morning?" he asked. Alexa sighed silently as she faced Daniel.

"With all due respect, it's none of your business," she said plainly. "So please, don't ask again." Daniel huffed.

"Whatever your dilemma may be, you really shouldn't take your aggression out on other people," he said coldly. Alexa winced a little; she was guilty of doing just that more than once. Hailey glared a little at her son.

"On that note, I think we'll be leaving for our hotel," Hayden said nervously.

"Are we still on for tomorrow?" Colin asked. Hayden smiled.

"Of course we are," he replied. "We'll see you tomorrow."

"Thanks for the coffee, Hailey, it was very nice," Lily said gratefully.

"The pack said it tastes like the coffee shop's cappuccino, but I couldn't tell the difference," Hailey said randomly. "But you're welcome! Drop by any time you like!"

"Thank you. See you tomorrow," Hayden said as he escorted his family out of the house. He closed the front door behind him, and Hailey waited for the big flash of white light to come and go before addressing Daniel.

"Daniel, I really don't understand why you don't like Hayden-"

"It's not Uncle Hayden and Aunt Lily I have a problem with," Daniel began. "I just prefer to avoid speaking to Alexa and Keenan."

"Why? They're really nice!" Daphne said in disbelief. "I can understand you don't like Troy, but-"

"Troy's too relaxed and casual for my liking," Daniel grumbled. "And I can't explain my distaste for Alexa and Keenan, they just...they just don't agree with me, you know? Much like Magikarp doesn't agree with dry land."

"Well, we'll be going to Undella Bay with them tomorrow, so you should be at your best behaviour around them," Colin cautioned.

"That goes double around Alexa; she's got her own problems to deal with, the last thing she needs is to feel someone in the family is-"

"Mum, she already knows how I feel about her," Daniel stated.

"Oh. Then I'd leave her be; like I said, she has her own problems," Hailey added.

"Will she be okay?" Daphne asked.

"I'm sure she will. But, for now, I'll get dinner started; macaroni night!" Hailey said excitedly. Daniel smiled.

"Aw, yum! I can't wait!" Daphne said joyfully.

The hotel room Alexa's family was staying in was apparently a very luxurious suite; there were two bedrooms, one with a double bed, the other with two single beds, and the main living room was extremely spacious, with two matching three-seater sofas in front of a glass rectangular coffee table, with a plasma screen television on the wall near the entrance to one of the bedrooms. There was also a reasonably sized desk in front of one of the windows, where there was a beautiful view of the Skyarrow bridge could be seen from the hotel room. Keenan was reading a TV guide on the sofa directly opposite the television while he waited for Hayden and Lily to return, and Alexa sat next to him, looking incredibly glum once again.

"It doesn't look like the Unova League's going to start until next month," Keenan said spontaneously. "Hey, there's a Charity Pokémon Tournament in a couple days!"

"Right," Alexa sighed. Keenan closed and dropped the TV guide onto the coffee table and looked at Alexa with greater concern.

"Alex, come on, you can't spend the entire holiday being so gloomy," he said worriedly.

"I'll pack my stuff then," Alexa said quietly.

"Easy on the sarcasm, Alexa," Hayden said as he entered the room. "Keenan, can you give your sister and me a few minutes, please?"

"Okay," Keenan complied as he left for the bedroom he was sharing with Alexa. Hayden sat down in Keenan's place and looked at Alexa.

"Thinking about Keith again?" he asked.

"Mainly what he said," Alexa replied. "The more I think about it...the more I realise he was right..." Alexa turned around to face her father, her eyes overwhelmed with sorrow. "I haven't completed a single mission on my own since Operation Brighton. And even then I wasn't on my own!"

"Honey, think about it for a minute; you've been on missions without another colleague, but you were still not on your own. Why?"

"Ryder?"

"Exactly!" Hayden smiled. "It might be the Pokémon Trainer instinct, but you never went on your missions prior to Operation Brighton without him, have you?"

"No," Alexa replied.

"From Keith's perspective, being alone means 'without another Ranger'; he must have forgotten about the partner Pokémon you have with you at all times, whoever that may be," Hayden smiled. "You're never alone, sweetheart; you have your Pokémon and, especially, your family backing your corner. Don't lose sight of that." Alexa smiled warmly.

"Thanks, Dad."

"Are you all right now?"

"Yeah. Thanks."

"You're welcome. Your mother and I are here for you if you ever need to talk about anything, okay?"

"Yeah. Thank you."

"Any time," Hayden smiled as he returned the hug Alexa was giving him. "You ready? The restaurant's about to open."

"Yeah, I'm getting rather hungry," Alexa chuckled.

"Snap," Hayden laughed. "After we come back," he began as Keenan and Lily returned to the room. "DVD and popcorn?"

"No arguments here," Lily said happily.

"What DVD will we be watching?" Keenan asked as he followed his parents and sister out of the room.

"Anything that's a better film than A Hero's Rising," Hayden joked as he locked the hotel door behind him. Keenan and Lily laughed as they made their way down the corridor towards the elevator. Hayden walked close to Alexa, as she held onto his arm for comfort, in spite of her gentle smile.

 _To be continued..._


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two – Visiting Relatives pt 2**

Hailey stood over the kitchen stove, atop of which was a saucepan filled with macaroni in boiling water, which Hailey was stirring with the wooden spoon in her free hand. There were two other saucepans on the stove, both with their lids on; both lids were transparent, but they were completely covered in steam from the contents inside, which made it impossible to identify said contents at a glance. On the worktop next to Hailey was a large bowl of prepared salad, made with lettuce leaves, cherry tomatoes, trace amounts of red onion, rocket leaves and balsamic vinegar for some seasoning. The oven underneath the stove was glowing in a gentle red-orange glow, cooking what looked like a baguette wrapped in tin foil, which lay on a baking tray in the middle of the oven. Hailey held the cordless telephone with her other hand.

"Seriously, though, I think it'll do Alexa some good," Hailey said. "She needs the time away from him."

"Sounds it," a male voice replied on the phone. "I thought he was supposed to be a nice guy."

"I wouldn't know, Harvey, I've never met him face to face," Hailey shrugged as she removed the lid from one of the other two saucepans and stirred the contents with a different spoon, after having left the wooden spoon in the macaroni saucepan.

"All I know about it is what I heard from her Pokémon," Harvey replied. "Got the buzz from them, y'see. There's a lot of mixed feelings about it as well."

"How do you mean?"

"Some of them are now carrying a grudge against Keith, some are more in the 'worried about Alexa' category, that sort of thing," Harvey explained. "It's actually rather interesting to say the least."

"I'm sure they'll be all right," Hailey smiled as she removed the spoon from the saucepan and replaced its lid, returning her focus to the cooking pasta. "Oh, there's a Pokémon Contest coming up at the end of the week-"

"C'mon, sis, you know we're already planning to visit you and Hayden," Harvey laughed. "We're going to be at that Contest Hall."

Daphne and Daniel were in their bedroom, which was simplistic. There were two single beds on the same wall, opposite the bedroom door, upon which was a poster beautifully depicting a favourite Pokémon mutually shared by both Daphne and Daniel; Articuno. The walls themselves were painted a relatively dark green, but with several other posters attached to them; some of the posters belonged to Daphne, as they depicted imagery that represented her love of music. There were posters of detective and/or crime novels, which belonged to Daniel, who was, in fact, reading his book, "Night of the Clefairy Dance", which was also one of the posters on the wall. The furnishing was also simplistic in design, but they added a certain charm to the room to make feel more homely to the twins. The bookcase was wonderfully divided into two sections; one side held Daphne's belongings, magazines and other knick-knacks like figurines and a plush Meloetta, and the other side was home to Daniel's many crime and detective novels, school books and a small blue book light that could clip to a book, which would allow Daniel to read in the dark. At the bottom of the bookcase, there were two large gaps, each with Daphne and Daniel's school bags neatly tucked inside in their proper places. In one corner of the room, on the same wall as the bedroom door, was a television with a DVD player underneath; there were two stacks of DVDs on either side of the player, one side housing Daphne's DVDs, the other housing Daniel's DVDs. Daniel was lying on his bed, his duvet set being a simple terracotta brown, with and Umbreon curled up peacefully near his feet, reading his novel. Daphne sat on her bed, her duvet set being black with white different sized stars printed all over the covers, with a resting Espeon on her lap, communicating with someone on her grey and pink Xtransceiver. Daphne had her other hand over her wrist for support, thus covering the Xtransceiver strap.

"You'd be concerned about her too if you saw that picture I told you about; that Manaphy looked so lonely...it gave me a really spooky vibe, Troy."

"There's a reason for your concern," Troy replied. On the Xtransceiver's display screen was a young adult with dark brunette hair, green eyes and an extremely thin goatee. "Alexa's had a row with her fella."

"Really?! That's so sad!" Daphne exclaimed. Daniel huffed to himself and continued his reading. "How did you hear about it?"

"From Perri," Troy replied. "She, in turn, was informed by Xavier, who is in the 'I hate Keith' corner."

"Be honest, Daphne, is it really any of our business?" Daniel sighed. "It's her problem, let her sort it out herself; I don't see why we should really care."

"You should care," Troy smirked. "Daphne may end up with the same dilemma one day!" Daniel, irate, quickly placed his bookmark in his book before closing it loudly, dropping it – almost on his Umbreon's head – and sprinted out of bed to face Troy on Daphne's Xtransceiver.

"Don't you start, Troy, don't you start!" Troy and Daphne laughed at Daniel's sudden burst of anger, though Daphne tried constantly to calm him down. The sudden eruption of noise awoke Daniel's Umbreon and Daphne's Espeon briefly; Umbreon went back to sleep after a sigh, but Espeon stayed awake, grinning rather smugly at his owner's brother.

Peggy heard Daphne's laughter and Daniel's inaudible rage from her bedroom. She shrugged it off and resumed her drawing. Peggy was pretty much surrounded in nothing but pink walls and carpet, but her furniture was mostly white. The single rounded rug in the middle of the room, where Peggy was drawing, was also white, but it had rounded bumps around it, almost like a flower. The bookcase in the corner of the room behind Peggy had many children's books and several plush Pokémon, all of which were Pokémon Peggy considered "cute"; among them were Cubone, Minccino, Eevee, Phanpy, Pachirisu, Munna and Shroomish. In front of the bookcase was a fully inflated blue and white beach ball. There was also a pink television on a white desk opposite Peggy's bed, but neither one looked as though they'd even been touched since they were placed in the bedroom. However, the chair that sat in front of the desk seemed to be home to Peggy's school backpack, which was identical to those belonging to her twin siblings, save for a small cute Chimecho keychain that depicted her name. Peggy's bed was a single white framed bed with a cute pink duvet set with purple flowers printed all over the covers; "Munna Print", Peggy called it. The red-eyed Swablu flew away from the bed and sat in front of the paper Peggy was drawing on. Swablu looked at the drawing and suddenly felt awkward; though viewed upside down, Peggy's drawing depicted rather crudely drawn stick figured of Keith and Alexa. In the picture, Keith appeared to be angry at Alexa, who seemed to have a bruise on her cheek and crying. Swablu wasn't sure if an eight year old girl like Peggy should be drawing something so grim.

"Piper...do you think Lexa will be happy again?" Peggy asked sadly as she halted her drawing.

"Blu?" Piper cooed in confusion.

"Lexa looked really sad today. I wish she was happy," Peggy sighed. Piper flew over to Peggy's beach ball and rolled it towards her by gently nudging it with her head. Peggy felt the beach ball softly hitting her leg and looked at it. Peggy smiled at her Swablu, dropped her blue crayon and proceeded to pick up her beach ball.

"Blu, blu!" Piper sang happily.

"You want to play? Okay, let's play!" Peggy said happily as she rolled the beach ball towards her cheery Swablu.

The sun was shining brightly the next morning, and not a single cloud could be seen in the sky. Peggy was at the beach, playing with her beach ball with Daphne and Keenan. Iara ran around Keenan as he ran around the beach, whilst Piper followed Peggy around in a similar manner; the objective of the game was nothing more than to catch the beach ball whenever it was thrown. There were no winners or losers. Daniel was lying on one of the beach deck chairs, under a large parasol, still reading his "Night of the Clefairy Dance" novel. Hailey, Colin, Hayden and Lily were also on their own beach deck chairs, sunbathing. Everyone was wearing some form of swimwear, but Hayden seemed to be the only one wearing sunglasses. Tidus lay on the sand next to Hayden, sleeping soundly. Chelsea was lying in the sun, basking in the sunlight, along with a Bellossom and a Maractus. Espeon and Umbreon were both resting underneath Daniel's deck chair.

"This was a good idea, dear," Colin said. "The weather's perfect for a beach trip."

"I'm glad everyone's having a good time," Hailey smiled.

"The kids are, that's for sure," Lily chuckled as she watched Peggy's little game. Daniel rolled his eyes and kept reading.

"I'm surprised there aren't more people here; I think we're the only ones on the entire beach," Hayden commented.

"Oh, everyone else is off at the Pokémon World Tournament; they say Cynthia and Lance are going to be there, as well as Steven," Hailey explained.

"I don't know why that place exists," Colin sighed.

"You're just jealous because you weren't contracted to design the building," Hailey teased.

"There is that, yeah," Colin chuckled. "Eh, whaddya gonna do?" he shrugged. Peggy suddenly stopped playing and looked around. She and Piper approached Hayden, looking rather worried.

"Uncle Hayden, I can't find Lexa!" she panicked.

"It's all right, sweet pea, Alexa's gone diving in the Undella Bay," Hayden said reassuringly.

"Why?" Peggy asked in confusion.

"She claimed it might take her mind off of her worries for a while," Lily replied sweetly. "That and she heard there are ruins at the bottom of the bay; and we know how much she likes that sort of thing."

"Now, don't you worry about a thing, baby girl, Alexa's more than capable of looking after herself," Hailey smiled. Peggy smiled and nodded at her mother as Keenan approached her.

"Are you okay, Peggy?" he asked. Peggy smiled at Keenan.

"I'm okay."

"Does this mean we're back on?" Keenan asked, with a smile on his face. Peggy nodded and the pair returned to Daphne, who held onto Peggy's beach ball.

Alexa was underwater, holding onto her Azumarill gently as they descended towards a large submerged stone structure. In addition to her blue swimsuit, Alexa wore a diving mask over her eyes and nose, black swimming shoes on her feet and an aqualung in her mouth to provide her with oxygen as her Azumarill dived further. Azumarill looked like any other Azumarill, with the exception of a white spot behind his right ear. The pair dove into the ruins and eventually made their way inside the ruins. Alexa was surprised to find that the ruins were bone dry on the inside, but gave it no second thought as she and her Azumarill climbed out of the water. She took off her aqualung and mask and carefully placed them near the hole leading back to the ocean. Alexa looked around the ruins with intrigue; the entire area appeared to be extremely bland, devoid of any kind of statue or furnishing or anything to take up the large amount of space before her. However, there were many different engravings on the walls, which captured Alexa's interest. Azumarill looked around and felt uneasy.

"Azu..."

"It's okay, Aquos, I think we're the only ones here," Alexa said kindly as she patted her Azumarill on the head. She took a closer look at the engravings on the wall nearest to her; she wished she had some way of translating the strange symbols, but, alas, they were all completely illegible to her. "So whoever lived in or built these ruins used a different language...I guess I sort of expected to see Unown hieroglyphs."

"Azu?"

"Mmhmm. This language is completely out of my league," Alexa sighed. "That raises the question of how old these ruins are... Was this place built before Unown hieroglyphs were discovered or did the people who built it simply use a different language?"

"Azumarill," Aquos walked over to Alexa.

"I'm sure they mean something, Aquos; I just can't read them." Alexa walked further into the room, looking around as she walked. Aquos followed her closely, still feeling rather unnerved at the ominous silence of the ruins; he felt as though he and Alexa would be ambushed at any given moment. He held onto Alexa for some comfort. Alexa laughed.

"Aquos, relax; I'm sure these ruins aren't haunted and I'm sure there's nobody here but us," she said as she stroked her fearful friend. "Nothing's going to hurt you." Aquos nodded and felt rather relaxed until he heard the noise of a coin being dropped onto the floor.

"AZUUU!" Aquos panicked and hid behind Alexa, shivering. Alexa looked down at the ground and spotted a rust coloured coin not too far from her feet.

"What's a penny doing in a place like this?" she asked herself as she knelt down to inspect the coin she allegedly kicked. After taking a closer look, the coin didn't look like any other penny she had seen before. Aquos looked at the coin over Alexa's shoulder and was equally as intrigued.

"I didn't think you'd be at the Pokémon World Tournament," Harvey chuckled as he and Troy approached Hayden, Lily, Hailey and Colin. Harvey, in terms of appearance, looked astonishingly similar to Troy; his brunette hair was tied in a ponytail, akin to Troy's, and had a slightly more obvious goatee, but his eyes were identical to Hayden's; sapphire blue. Contrary to Hayden, however, Harvey wore a simple green T-shirt and grey jeans with black boots, whilst Troy wore a white vest with grey jeans and black boots. Hayden stood up from the deck chair and approached Harvey, who was considerably taller than Hayden. Riding on Harvey's shoulder was a happy looking Aipom with an extremely untidy cowlick and a grey ring near the end of his tail.

"How are you, Harvey?" Hayden asked, pulling his sunglasses up to his forehead.

"We're fine, Uncle Hayden," Troy replied. "How're you enjoying Unova?"

"So far so good," Hayden nodded as, eventually, the other three adults approached Harvey and Troy. "Hotel's better than I thought it would be."

"Glad to hear it," Harvey smiled.

"Hello there, Laddy," Lily smiled as she stroked the Aipom's cheek.

"Aipom!" Laddy said merrily.

"Aunt Lily, is Alexa okay?" Troy asked.

"Oh, yes, she's fine at the moment, thank you for asking," Lily replied. Harvey looked around the beach; he saw Daphne, Peggy and Keenan playing their game and Daniel ignoring everyone else and reading his book, but...

"Where IS she anyway?" Before anyone could answer, Troy spotted Alexa and Aquos surfacing from the ocean not too far from the shore.

"There she is," Troy smiled as the pair made their way to the beach. Alexa pulled her diving mask down to her neck after taking the aqualung out of her mouth. She smiled as she approached the adults.

"Troy! Uncle Harvey!"

"So you were swimming, huh? Meet any interesting Pokémon?" Troy asked.

"Not really," Alexa said, losing her smile a little. "We saw some Basculin and Frillish...that was about it. But Aquos and I found this," she said as she unveiled the item clasped in her left hand; the copper coin she found in the ruins was resting in her palm. Intrigued, Daniel placed his bookmark in his book and joined in the conversation and got a look at the coin.

"You don't see pennies like that anymore," Hailey laughed.

"Where did you find that?" Daniel asked.

"The undersea ruins in the bay," Alexa answered truthfully. Harvey laughed.

"I should've known you'd check those ruins out for yourself, chick. Why don't you see Undella's antique dealer about it? He might end up buying it off of you," he suggested with a cheeky wink.

"I will, considering I don't have a use for it," Alexa smiled. "But I think it'll be a better idea if I paid him a visit once I'm dry enough. And have gotten all this salt out of my hair. Dad, can you please look after this while I'm gone?"

"Of course I can," Hayden replied as he accepted the coin from Alexa. Daniel spotted Daphne waving him over, encouraging him to join in the game; he shrugged and ran off to join his sister. Alexa and Aquos ran over to her bag and took out a green bottle and a comb before walking over to the beach showers near the steps leading to the Pokémon Centre, Troy following behind them.

"How's she taking things?" Harvey asked. "Y'know, with the..." Hayden placed the coin in his pocket.

"I don't know," Hayden replied. "I had a word with her about it last night after dinner; I think she's trying to put it behind her, but I don't think she's ready to move on from it yet."

"How did you know about it anyway?" Colin asked. "I mean, did Hailey tell you, or..?"

"Yeah, but I knew about it beforehand; Alexa's Pokémon are all talking about it," Harvey explained.

"All of them?" Lily asked.

"Well...I don't think the 'babies' of the bunch know anything," Harvey replied awkwardly. "Anyway, the ones that do know about it seem to have their own views on the matter; some are more worried about Alexa, some are harbouring grudges against Keith, but most of them are purely 'in the know', if you will."

"Which ones have the grudges, dare I ask?" Hailey questioned.

"The only ones I know about who carry these grudges are Xavier and Ryder," Harvey replied.

"I'm not surprised; both of them spent quite a lot of time around Keith, Ryder especially, being the first Pokémon of Alexa's Keith met," Hayden mused. "I just hope the matter gets resolved, whatever the outcome; this whole thing's bugging Alexa to no end."

"I hope so," Harvey admitted. "Anyway, did you manage to see A Hero's Rising?"

"Yes, and it sucks," Hailey said bluntly. "Even Peggy didn't like it!" Harvey laughed.

"Hardly surprising; I've seen the reviews. On average, the movie received one star out of five and one point out of ten, mostly because of the whole 'it was hilariously bad' thing."

"Which is a shame; Troy's Golurk played the villain's Pokémon," Lily said worriedly.

"I don't think Brad really cares about the movie's reception," Harvey chuckled. "At any rate, it's usually the director and/or writers that get the blame for how bad a movie is; the actors just do as they're told and follow the script."

"Still, I am happy to see Alexa finally cheering up," Hayden smiled as he looked over at the beach showers; Alexa was massaging the shampoo into her hair as she spoke with Troy. Aquos was under the shower next to her, dancing around without a single care in the world. Troy and Alexa began laughing.

"Does Keith know where she is?" Harvey asked.

"Like I said to Hailey yesterday, I don't know if she said anything to Keith," Lily explained.

"I wouldn't think she said anything to him," Hayden assumed. "She hasn't spoken to him or looked him in the eye since that argument."

"Makes sense," Harvey nodded. "I just asked in case he tries to rain in on her parade."

"If he does, he needs to get through the umbrella," Hayden stated firmly. Harvey grinned.

"Nice! By the way, what's Keenan's take on the whole thing?" Harvey asked curiously. Hayden looked towards his son, who was still playing with Daphne, Daniel and Peggy; Keenan had the beach ball and threw it towards the less enthusiastic Daniel.

"He's more concerned about Alexa than Keith," Hayden replied. "Though he's still a little hurt, considering he trusted Keith."

"Sounds like Keith lost some brownie points after that argument," Colin stated.

"Evidently. I doubt Keith knows the damage he caused when he lashed out on Alexa," Hayden sighed.

"So he started it?" Hailey asked.

"We don't know," Lily replied. "Like I told you, Alexa was incredibly sketchy on the details; she didn't mention which of them started the argument, just that he had the last word before she ran away from the Ranger Union."

"So she ran from the Ranger Union to Chicole Village? All by herself?" Harvey asked.

"No, she had Franz with her," Lily answered. "But she did run the entire way."

"Wow. Still, the main thing is she's happy," Harvey smiled as he watched Alexa, Aquos and Troy returning to the adults. "By the way, chick, what did you think of A Hero's Rising?"

"A waste of time," Alexa replied as she walked over to her bag. She took out a white towel and dropped her green bottle inside the bag. "The characters were extremely one-dimensional and horribly clichéd, the plot was generic and predictable, there were continuity errors and plot holes everywhere, the dialogue was incredibly cheesy and the only good acting came from the Pokémon," she elaborated as she rubbed the towel slightly around her head. Her response startled Hailey, Hayden and Lily. "I was bored after the first 10 minutes, so I just ignored the rest of the film for the most part. Though it was also because I couldn't help thinking about my...about Keith."

"Does he know you're here, chick?" Harvey asked. Alexa shook her head.

"I didn't say anything to Keith. I've purposely left my mobile and laptop at home in case he tries to text, call or email me," Alexa replied. "I don't want to worry about him while I'm here," she added as she placed her towel back in her bag and took out a hairbrush. "The last thing I want is to have this holiday spoiled because I told Keith where I am," she said as she began running the brush through her slightly damp and rather tangled hair.

"You don't have to worry about us, sweetheart; if Keith does try to find you, he'll need to get through your mother and I before he can get close to you," Hayden said.

"Thanks, Dad," Alexa smiled. She suddenly felt the hairbrush stopping in its tracks; when Alexa tried to pull it further, she felt a slightly painful pulling sensation from the top of her head. Alexa groaned. "I used the towel to dry my hair because...?" Lily laughed as she took the hairbrush in her hand.

"Here, let me sort this out." Lily took the hairbrush out of the tangled mess and gripped the hair tightly just above where the hairbrush got stuck. Being careful not to pull too hard on Alexa's hair, Lily pulled the brush down the tangled mess quickly and rather vigorously until Alexa's hair was smooth and free from tangles. Lily gave Alexa's hair a gentle brushing for a few seconds before returning the hairbrush to Alexa.

"Thanks, Mum, I appreciate it."

"You're welcome, honey," Lily smiled.

"Say, Alexa, aren't you going to go to the antique dealer about that coin?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, why?" Alexa asked.

"I should go with you, just in case the dealer's dad's there," Troy suggested.

"Yes, he is rather...passionate about rare artefacts," Hailey said timidly.

"Passionate? That's putting it mildly, the guy's a psycho for rare artefacts," Harvey said rather rudely.

"Thanks, Troy, I didn't think of that," Alexa said gratefully. Hayden returned the old coin to Alexa, and Alexa headed towards one of the buildings at the far end of the beach with Troy and Aquos following closely.

It was about ten minutes later by the time the adults were packing their belongings away. Daphne and Peggy were still playing their ball game, but Keenan and Daniel had since left the game to pack up their stuff as well. Keenan kept his gaze away from Daniel, knowing of his distaste for Alexa and Keenan himself. Iara hung from Keenan's shoulder and watched him as he packed his stuff into his bag. Keenan smiled when he spotted Troy and Alexa approaching the beach a few minutes later. Alexa immediately approached her bag and discreetly slipped a folded up piece of paper into a secret compartment inside her bag before closing it altogether. Hailey approached Alexa, her bag already around her shoulders.

"Sorry, Alexa, I forgot to tell you; there's a Pokémon Contest in Nimbasa City this weekend, and I was wondering if you'd like to watch," Hailey offered politely.

"I'd be happy to," Alexa smiled as she lifted her bag off of the sand, placing the strap around her shoulders. "I haven't seen a Pokémon Contest live before; most of the contests I've seen have been on live television."

"That's great!"

"Are you participating this year?"

"Like I do every year," Hailey winked. "I tell you what, though, Eric's been excited about this contest since the last one, especially since he couldn't participate last year because of a broken arm."

"Think he's up for it?" Alexa asked as she looked towards the seemingly motionless Bellossom.

"Course he is! Aren't you, darling?"

"Bellossom!" Eric replied as he awoke and danced over towards Hailey. The little Flower Pokémon jumped up as Hailey crouched, allowing Eric to land right in Hailey's arm. Hailey stood up and faced Alexa, her Bellossom in her arm.

"I promised the appeal stage to Eric this year, seeing as he missed out. It was stupid, really, he fell over during rehearsal and fell on his arm," Hailey explained.

"I'm glad me made a full recovery," Alexa smiled. "Can't wait to see your appeal, Eric."

"Bell-ossom," Eric bowed courteously.

"You're welcome," Alexa said politely. Harvey and Hayden approached Hailey and Alexa.

"We're all set," Hayden said. "Fancy stopping at the café for drinks or something?"

"I don't mind," Hailey replied. "I'm up for whatever the majority wants to do."

"So far, that's the café," Harvey laughed.

"What about you, Lexie?" Hayden asked.

"Sure, that'd be nice."

"Azu, azu!" Aquos cheered happily. Hayden smiled as he and Harvey began walking towards the café with Alexa and Aquos. Hailey looked towards her two daughters.

"Daphne, Peggy, café time! Come on!" she called. In response to Hailey's call, Daphne and Peggy ceased their game and ran towards their mother, Daphne holding the beach ball under her arm.

The café was a very spacious and charming place; there were many identical white tables around the main area, all of different sizes and with identical matching chairs around them, some tables having more than others, considering the different table sizes, shapes and lengths. In three of the café's corners were three seating booths, which all shared the same white leather seats in front of three squared tables. The service counter was at the far end of the café, which had various snacks, sandwiches, cakes and soft drinks on display, with a reasonably sized freezer for the ice creams. On top of the freezer was several stacks of ice cream cones and disposable tubs for the ice creams, and a selection of sprinkles, sauces and a tub of small chocolate sticks. Behind the cash register were two identical coffee machines with a selection of different flavour coffee syrups and several other containers, presumably containing chocolate for sprinkling. Above the service counter were three large boards that made up the full café menu and displayed all of the prices for the products sold. Hayden, Lily, Hailey, Colin, Harvey, Troy, Daniel, Daphne, Peggy, Keenan and Alexa all sat at one of the seating booths, Troy and Harvey having cheekily borrowed two chairs from a different table in order to sit on the same table as their family. The Pokémon were all nearby, each with a bowl of poffins in front of them. The poffins in each bowl were all different coloured. Daphne and Peggy were the only ones with an ice cream cone, Daphne's being strawberry with a chocolate sauce and Peggy's being vanilla with sprinkles on top. Everyone else had a cold drink of some variety; Daniel, Alexa, Keenan and Hayden each had a cola – Hayden's and Alexa's being the same, Hailey had an iced coffee, Harvey, Troy and Colin each had a fruit smoothie. Daphne and Peggy had their own little conversation.

"So, Hayden, what do you have planned for the rest of the week?" Harvey asked curiously.

"I think it's something we need to discuss amongst ourselves, but I was thinking a shopping trip tomorrow and maybe a trip to Nimbasa City before the contest this weekend," Hayden replied. "I haven't really thought about it, this is only day two."

"If you're going shopping, do you plan on going to Shopping Mall Nine?" Harvey asked.

"Urgh, no! It's not like my department stores; not only do they allow Pokémon battles indoors, but it's pretty much exactly what my department stores used to be; just a glorified multi-storey PokéMart with no merchandise ordinary people can use," Hayden ranted with disgust.

"I keep telling you, Hayden; buy Unova's PokéMarts," Harvey said casually as he drank his smoothie.

"I'm not sure if I can; the PokéMarts in Unova aren't even proper PokéMarts, they're just piggyback riding on the Pokémon Centres," Hayden said plainly. "As soon as you go into a Unova Pokémon Centre, there's the 'PokéMart' counter on your right hand side."

"Stupid idea, that was," Colin sighed. "But if you were able to purchase Shopping Mall Nine, think you'd be able to fix it up?"

"In two shakes of a Flaaffy's tail," Hayden replied. "It's just a matter of whether it's worth the investment, given its location; between the Tubeline Bridge and Opelucid City? It doesn't feel worth adding to my department store collection."

"That's a strange way to call it, Hayden," Hailey laughed.

"I suppose so, but you know what I mean, right? For now, though, I'll leave it be," Hayden stated. "My PokéMart business is stronger than it's ever been."

"Unsurprisingly; you were the one who pulled it out of the gutter by adding human only products to the smaller PokéMart stores," Colin smiled.

"And adding a PokéMart in Cianwood City," Hailey added. "That was a good move, and a desperately needed one."

"I know; I mean, what were the Cianwood citizens living on in the meantime, sand and sea water?" Hayden chuckled.

"Hey, Alexa; if you're going shopping tomorrow, thought about what you're going to get?" Troy asked curiously. Alexa lowered her soda can from her lips and faced Troy.

"No idea, why?"

"Well, there's that $1000 you've got from that coin you found in the ruins," Troy began. "Maybe you can treat yourself to a little spree of some kind?"

"Troy, $1000 is nothing compared to the seldom touched prize money I won for winning the Sinnoh league," Alexa sighed. "But, no, I have no idea what I'm going to spend the $1000 on."

"What about a Xtransceiver?" Hayden suggested. Alexa looked up at her father in confusion.

"Hm?"

"Y'know, one of these," Daphne said as she held out her wrist to Alexa, showing her the Xtransceiver. "You can take it off if you want to; I would, except my other hand's preoccupied."

"I don't know how..."

"Here." Hayden carefully took Daphne's wrist and pulled the Xtransceiver off of her. Daphne smiled.

"Thank you, Uncle Hayden. Here, Alexa, check it out," Daphne said happily. Alexa took hold of the Xtransceiver and looked at it curiously; Daphne's strap was white with an assortment of black musical notes printed all around it. Alexa felt the strap to be rather smooth, almost like a thin and unused sweatband, only with a more limited elasticity.

"So...it's a watch?" Alexa asked.

"Its 'idle' display is a watch, yeah, but it's more like a PokéGear in watch form," Daphne explained. "It doesn't have radio on it, though, but you can put your own music on it for ringtones! And your own photos for the wallpaper if the standard ones and interface designs don't suit your tastes!"

"So how do I get to the menus?" Alexa asked curiously.

"The main screen is a touch screen," Daphne explained. "There are two other screens hidden in the Xtransceiver, but I've not needed to call more than one person at a time," she added nervously. "And you can change the straps whenever you want; there are so many different design choices in XCommunications, the Xtransceiver store in Castelia City!"

"Except Daphne didn't need to look at the other designs," Daniel said with a small smirk. "She saw the music note one and fell in love with it immediately."

"What can I say? I love music," Daphne laughed.

"No need to tell me twice," Daniel replied.

"I think it's a good idea," Keenan smiled. "Besides, your PokéGear's broken, isn't it?" Keenan purposely withheld the information regarding how Alexa's PokéGear broke; the truth was Alexa had the PokéGear with her, in her pocket, when she, Keith and Keenan intercepted the poacher Jordan on Mt Silver, and it was with her when she and Keith got caught in the avalanche Jordan caused in the first place.

"Oh yeah..."

"All the more reason to consider a Xtransceiver," Daphne grinned.

"I'm going to get one when I'm older!" Peggy smiled delightfully. Alexa examined the Xtransceiver a little more; the more she looked at it, the more intrigued she became.

"Maybe I should..."

 _To be continued..._


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three – Retail Therapy**

"Although I should cash my cheque before I buy a Xtransceiver," Alexa added, continuing to curiously examine her cousin's Xtransceiver.

"Well, you don't need to hurry with making the decision, Alexa, so don't worry about it," Hayden smiled. But Alexa kept looking at the Xtransceiver, with a tiny smile on her face. She eventually shrugged and passed it back to Daphne.

"I'll sleep on it. Thanks for showing it to me, Daphne," she smiled.

"No problem," Daphne grinned. She looked between the Xtransceiver and her half eaten ice cream cone before laughing nervously. "I'll, uh, put it back on when I have both hands free. But, hey, if you are going to get a Xtransceiver, what colour are you going to get?"

"I don't know yet," Alexa replied simply, taking a drink from her cola can. "Why, what colours are there?"

"What colours AREN'T there?!" Daphne rhetorically asked in excitement. "They have colours like red, green, blue, orange, lilac, and they even have weird mixes of colours, like red and yellow, blue and pink, black and green, grey and yellow, and don't even get me started on the strap colours and designs! When I was at XCommunications last, they had pink hearts, yellow stars, white diamonds, black spades, green clovers and even some designs inspired by Pokémon, like Vulpix, Smoochum, Azurill, Togepi, and the Happiny one was so cute! But they also had-"

"Settle down, Daphne, you'll make her head spin!" Hailey laughed. Daphne looked at the confused look on Alexa's face before laughing sheepishly.

"Sorry; I guess I got a little carried away."

"A little?" Alexa questioned.

"With enthusiasm like that for the Xtransceiver, you might as well be a sales assistant for XCommunications," Daniel said teasingly. Daphne laughed shyly.

"I was just excited about getting one after seeing Troy's, that's all," she replied.

"They are good communication devices," Daniel commented. "I'm almost surprised you hadn't considered obtaining one sooner, Alexa."

"My PokéGear was working perfectly fine, thank you," Alexa muttered.

"Was being the operative word; Keenan clearly stated your PokéGear is now broken," Daniel stated. "How did you break it anyway?"

"That's none of your concern," Alexa groaned.

"Daniel, we talked about this," Colin said rather sternly.

"I didn't mean to sound intrusive, Alexa; I was just under the impression that you take care of your electronics," Daniel explained.

"I..." Alexa sighed. "I had a stupid accident and fell on my PokéGear." At least, that was how Alexa assumed her PokéGear broke during the avalanche at Mt Silver...

"I see. Regardless, I'll agree with Daphne; you should buy a Xtransceiver," Daniel said. "I personally find they're much more convenient to have on hand than a PokéGear or a PokéNav, considering the fact they don't take any pocket space, seeing as they're worn on one's wrist as opposed to being placed in one's pocket."

"Hmm." Alexa looked at her distorted reflection on her cola can, in thought about both the idea of owning a Xtransceiver and how her PokéGear broke in the first place. However, one thought kept returning to her, no matter what she was thinking of; Keith.

It was approximately a half hour later by the time the entire family left the café. Troy, Harvey and Laddy waved farewell to the rest of their family members as they parted ways, heading south of Undella Bay. The afternoon sun was shining brightly in the sky, and Laddy surveyed the extreme tranquillity of the area; the waterfalls nearby crashed down with mighty roars that almost sounded relaxing at the same time, the streams were cold and glistening, and the grass was as fresh as ever. Nearby joggers were blessed with such serene surroundings and the wild Pokémon were also at peace in such a blissful atmosphere.

"So, who's Keith anyway?" Troy asked quickly.

"I thought you said you told Daphne about it?" Harvey queried.

"I did; I told her what Perri heard from Xavier, but that's all I know about the guy," Troy shrugged. "Who is he anyway?"

"Alexa's boyfriend."

"Apart from that," Troy added. Harvey sighed silently as he ran his fingers through his hair.

"He's a colleague of Alexa's at the Ranger Union in Almia; they used to be best friends since Ranger School before they fell in love...or, rather, before he confessed his love to her," Harvey explained. "Though they have been under pressure lately because of their struggles against a Pokémon Poacher in Johto about a month ago."

"So he dumped her?" Troy asked, looking rather unimpressed.

"No, they're just not on good terms with one another right now; apparently, they had an argument last week and they haven't spoken to each other since," Harvey continued. "From what Hayden told me, he really hurt her feelings during that argument." Troy huffed and shook his head, almost in disgust. "By the way, Troy, seeing as you get along with Alexa really well, would you mind spending some more time with her?"

"Sure, no problem," Troy smiled. Harvey smiled back at his son.

"Thanks, sport, she'll appreciate it."

In the middle of the night, Alexa and Keenan both slept in one of the two single beds in one of the hotel bedrooms. The room, despite being too dark to see most of the décor, had cream coloured walls with a dark brown carpet. There was a large wardrobe near Keenan's bed on the farthest side of the room, a smaller television set facing both beds on the same wall as the bedroom door and a decent sized desk and chair in front of the window near Alexa's bed. Keenan and Iara slept soundly in bed, with Iara lying at the foot of Keenan's bed, but Alexa, however, tossed and turned as she slept, moaning quietly on occasion.

" _Aren't you the one who's supposed to adapt to new situations?!"_

" _Oh, how WAS the inside of Victreebel, by the way?!"_

Alexa struggled to sleep peacefully with all of the horrible memories of her bickering and arguments with Keith came back to her; Keith's voice seemed to resonate in her mind as the hurtful words played in her mind. The more she thought of those awful memories, the more distressed Alexa became; her tossing and turning grew a little faster and she began to sweat more.

" _Shut up and listen to me!"_

" _Hah! That would've been him doomed then; you couldn't even look out for your Butterfree, and look where THAT went!"_

Alexa threw a punch randomly in her sleep, but ended up waking up sharply as she began to fall out of the bed. She yelped a little, startled by the sudden drop, and quickly held her arms out in front of her to prevent her from hurting herself. She began to hyperventilate as she slowly pulled herself up off of her hands and feet and sat on her bed. She placed her hands on either side of her forehead and rested her arms on her thighs, just above her knees, as she tried to take deep breaths and calm herself down, despite the memories she recalled in her heavily disturbed slumber. Alexa began to panic; no matter where she'd been or what she'd done during the days since the family holiday began, she couldn't stop thinking about her fights with Keith. It was almost as if her conscience was trying to tell her to talk to him, but...she couldn't bring herself to, in case she made matters worse for them both. She wasn't sure what she should do, no matter how much thought she put into how she can fix things with Keith. As her breathing slowed down and became more steady, Alexa lay back onto her bed and pulled the cover over her body. However, it took a little while before she finally closed her eyes and went back to sleep.

The next morning, Hayden and Alexa stood outside XCommunications, a relatively large store dedicated to selling Xtransceivers and accessories. Inside the shop, several customers were already happily browsing the merchandise and speaking to sales assistants about their enquiries. Floating above Alexa was a very happy-looking Togetic with a grey anklet on his left ankle and rather large wings that flapped pretty quickly as he hovered near Alexa, and standing next to Hayden was a Liepard with three whiskers, an extremely smooth coat and an oddly sweet demeanour for a Dark type Pokémon. Alexa carried her Safari Ball backpack on her back, whereas Hayden wore his usual navy blue belt pouch over his blue grey jeans and brown polo shirt. Alexa wore a pink Poké Ball belt over her sky blue short and orange T-shirt. Her grey socks were so long they almost completely covered her legs, and she wore her usual white trainers. Hayden looked towards Alexa.

"Are you sure about this?" Hayden asked. Alexa looked up at him cheerfully.

"Of course. I said I'd sleep on it, didn't I?" The fact that Alexa had her Togetic with her hadn't escaped Hayden's notice, but chose to keep his concerns to himself; after all, his daughter had decided to get herself a Xtransceiver, and he wasn't going to get in her way of that.

"Then let's see if this place is as good as Daphne claimed," Hayden smiled as he, Alexa and the two Pokémon entered the store.

Upon entering the store, Hayden and Alexa were awestruck immediately; there were many Xtransceivers displayed in numerous locked glass cabinets placed around the shop floor, but even more Xtransceiver straps on display on the many shelves lined around the shop floor, each shelf with a different set of strap designs on them and with one of five numbers, from one to five, clearly indicated on the very top of the shelves. There were three small tables scattered around the area, each with three seats around them. The tables themselves were rounded and had a built in cabinet, which was locked at all times. There was a shelf near Alexa and Hayden that was dedicated to accessories for the Xtransceiver, such as gift boxes, display cones – which was available in five different widths, and cleaning equipment. Opposite the merchandise were three electronic cash registers on one long glass cabinet, which contained Xtransceivers that had been repaired and were awaiting collection by their owners. On the far side of the shop floor was a doorway that was off limits to customers, as it presumably led to areas such as the staff room and manager's office. A sales assistant walked over to Hayden and Alexa, wearing a kind smile on her face.

"Hello there, welcome to XCommunications," she greeted kindly. "My name's Shelly, may I help you at all?"

"Oh, yeah, hello, um, I'm looking to buy a Xtransceiver," Alexa replied. "I was wondering if you could tell me more about it?"

"Yes, of course," Shelly nodded. "Shall we take a seat?"

"Thank you," Hayden thanked as he and Alexa followed Shelly to one of the three tables around the shop floor. Shelly took the keys that hung from her belt and unlocked the cabinet on the table as Alexa and Hayden sat down. Before sitting down herself, Shelly placed a test model Xtransceiver and an unusual looking set of five white straps, all of different sizes, on the table. She placed the collection of straps to one side as she began to demonstrate the Xtransceiver's properties.

"How familiar are you with the Xtransceiver?" she asked Alexa.

"Not very, I only had a look at my cousin's Xtransceiver yesterday," Alexa replied. "She told me some of its functions, but not all of them."

"Well, the first thing you should know about the Xtransceiver is its compatibility with other communication devices, such as the PokéGear," Shelly began. "The Xtransceiver can contact and receive calls from both models of the PokéGear and PokéNavs with the Match Call software installed, albeit without seeing any video as you would see if you were communicating with other Xtransceivers and video phones. The Xtransceiver is unique in comparison to the PokéGear and PokéNav in the fact that it has the ability to contact three devices at the same time with its two extra screens here," she explained further as she carefully pulled out a small hidden screen on either side of the Xtransceiver. "Even if the devices themselves are different; for example, the Xtransceiver can communicate with a PokéGear, another Xtransceiver and a video phone at the same time."

"That sounds great," Alexa smiled. Togetic looked at the test model Xtransceiver from over Alexa's shoulder, while Liepard sat next to Hayden patiently.

"How does one add contacts to the Xtransceiver?" Hayden asked.

"Mainly Infared," Shelly replied quickly. "But that's mostly between Xtransceivers, PokéNavs and PokéGears, as they all come with an Infared receivers, the Xtransceiver's being just here." Shelly pointed to a small red line on the top of the Xtransceiver, just above the small lump that was the Xtransceiver's camera. "However, the contact numbers for a video phone has to be recorded manually with the Xtransceiver's keypad," she explained further as she pulled the pink tab out of the Xtransceiver, revealing a small keypad, not dissimilar to the keypad of a mobile phone; the numbers one, two and three were on the top row, the numbers four, five and six were on the second row, the numbers seven, eight and nine were on the penultimate row and the asterisk symbol, number zero and hashtag symbol were on the very bottom row. "Despite the keypad looking like a mobile phone keypad, the Xtransceiver is not compatible with mobile phones, but it does provide an alternative means of inputting contact details to using the Xtransceiver's touch screen, which is also the main screen here," she added, pointing to the Xtransceiver's central screen. She returned the two side screens into their hiding places and turned the Xtransceiver over. "The strap is detachable and the button for that is right here," she added as she pointed to a very tiny hole underneath the Xtransceiver, located about one centimetre from the strap. "Something thin like a paper clip or an earring is needed to actually remove the strap; the reason for that design choice is to prevent accidental detachment."

"I see; otherwise it would fall off when you don't want it to and break," Hayden guessed.

"That's right," Shelly smiled. "The strap itself is unique in comparison to that of the Pokétch, as it's not a clip on or made of plastic; it's elastic that has limited elasticity."

"Why would the elasticity be so limited?" Alexa asked.

"That's another intentional design choice," Shelly began. "You see, the Xtransceiver strap is designed to fit snugly, yet securely on one's wrist, so no matter how much physical exercise you do, the Xtransceiver won't slip off of your wrist, nor will it somehow turn upside down like normal wristwatches do from time to time."

"Are there any other features that make the Xtransceiver stand out from the Pokétch or the PokéGear?" Hayden asked.

"Yes, sir, its USB port," Shelly explained as she took one of her earrings off and used the small pin to press the strap detachment button to remove the strap; once she removed the strap, she showed the Xtransceiver's hidden USB port to Alexa and Hayden. "With it, you can upload your own choice of music and photos to the Xtransceiver and use them for ringtones and avatars or wallpapers respectively. The only thing you can't upload to a Xtransceiver is video files, as it doesn't have the ability to record video footage."

"That's what video cameras are for," Hayden stated. Shelly laughed as she placed the strap back onto the Xtransceiver. Alexa noticed how the strap just clipped into place.

"Exactly."

"What's the interface like?" Alexa asked.

"That's up to you," Shelly replied, showing her and Hayden the Xtransceiver's customisation option in its menu listing; in the menu were several other options, such as font, font colour, theme etc. "The Xtransceiver has several default themes, but all of them can have a colour scheme of your choice with the colour slider."

"Is that, like, five colours?" Alexa asked sarcastically.

"No, unlike the Pokétch's colour changing app, the colour slider is actually the complete colour wheel; every colour, hue and saturation is available for you to choose from," Shelly explained as she took the basic white and yellow floral theme and played about with the colour wheel, changing its colours for Hayden and Alexa to see. Alexa was very impressed.

"Aw, that's so cool!"

"The same thing can be done for your own pictures as well," Shelly added. "In addition to that, you can also add separate ringtones for each of your contacts and have a separate default ringtone of your choice for contacts that aren't registered."

"Like with a mobile phone?" Alexa asked.

"That's right," Shelly nodded. "Do you have any further questions?"

"No, I think that's all I need to know," Alexa smiled. "Thank you so much!"

"You're welcome. One more thing, though; our Xtransceiver straps come in five sizes, and we measure your wrist to find out which strap size is best for you," Shelly said as she took the strange set of straps in place of the Xtransceiver. "If that's all right with you?"

"Of course," Alexa complied.

"Which hand are you going to wear the Xtransceiver on?" Shelly asked. Alexa held out her right arm.

"My right," she replied. "What are they made of?" she asked curiously.

"They're made of the same material as the actual Xtransceiver straps," Shelly explained. "These are the measuring straps we use to determine what size strap is best for which wearer."

Shelly gently took Alexa's hand, carefully took the strap marked "1" and tried to feed it down Alexa's hand, taking care to not hurt her. However, the strap refused to move any further than Alexa's knuckles, so Shelly removed the strap and repeated the process with the strap marked "2". The strap slid perfectly down Alexa's wrist and rested around her wrist comfortably. Shelly removed the strap and repeated the process for the number "3" strap, which was proven to be slightly too big for Alexa, as it was able to move around on her wrist. To be safe, Shelly repeated the process for the number "4" and "5" straps, both of which were clearly too big for Alexa's wrist – the number "5" strap could've fallen off of her wrist entirely if it had the opportunity!

"And I think it looks like you're a size 2," Shelly commented as she returned the Xtransceiver and measuring straps to the cabinet.

"Does that mean anything?" Alexa asked as she retracted her arm.

"It just means your wrist is too big for a petite strap, but too small for a regular strap," Shelly explained politely. "If you go to the strap shelf marked "2", you can choose from any of the strap designs we have on that shelf; once you've chosen the strap, I'll come with you while you choose which Xtransceiver you would like with the strap."

"Thank you so much," Alexa said courteously as she, Hayden and Shelly stood up from their seats. "Come on, Halo."

"Chokeh!" Halo smiled as he followed Alexa to the designated strap shelf and browsed the many strap designs with her. Hayden took another look around at the store before facing Shelly.

"Would it be possible to speak to the manager of this store?" Hayden asked curiously. Shelly felt uneasy.

"I-Is there a problem, sir?" she asked nervously.

"Not at all; I was only wondering if I could have a word with them, that's all," Hayden replied casually. Shelly still looked uncertain, but she nodded regardless.

"I'll see what I can do, sir, I'll be back as soon as possible," she said courteously as she walked away from Hayden. Hayden looked down at his Liepard.

"Tiffany, why don't you go and help Alexa find a strap she likes?" he asked quietly.

"Mreow," Tiffany nodded and walked over towards Alexa just in time for Shelly to return with black haired gentleman in a grey suit.

"Hello, sir, my name's Roger Howard, manager of this XCommunications store," the stranger said professionally. "Is there a problem?"

"No, there isn't," Hayden replied, facing the manager completely. He held out his hand to the manager. "Hayden Thorndyke, CEO of the PokéMart Company."

"Ah, yes, I thought you looked familiar somehow," Roger smiled as he shook Hayden's hand. "You look different when you're not wearing a suit."

"Yes, well, I'm not willing to wear my suit during a family holiday," Hayden chuckled. "Anyway, I was wondering if your company has considered opening branches in Kanto, Johto, Hoenn and/or Sinnoh."

"Not that I'm aware of," Roger replied. "As far as I know, no such plans have been made. Why do you ask?"

"I have a department store in all four regions, and each of them is in need of a couple more businesses to fill in the gaps," Hayden explained. "I was just wondering if your company would be interested in occupying one of those spaces in any of my department stores." Shelly spotted Alexa taking her chosen strap from the shelf and approached her and the Pokémon. She escorted Alexa to the glass cabinets with the Xtransceivers locked inside.

"To be honest, Mr Thorndyke, it's not my place to say; I'm only the manager of this store in particular," Roger explained. "The decision to expand the company into other regions is ultimately down to our own CEO."

"I'm aware of that," Hayden said as he took out a small wallet sized card from one of the small compartments of his belt pouch and presented it to Roger. "Would it be possible for you to give your CEO my business card? If they're interested in expanding the company into another region or two, we can discuss it after my family's vacation is over." Roger accepted Hayden's business card and placed it in his front pocket.

"I'll see to it that he gets it by the end of the day, Mr Thorndyke," he smiled as Shelly took Alexa, with her chosen Xtransceiver, to the cash registers to make the final payment. Roger spotted the transaction, and almost laughed when he saw where Halo was sitting. "Is that girl with the Togetic on her head your daughter?"

"She is, yes," Hayden nodded as he looked at Alexa. Tiffany smiled back at Hayden. "The Togetic's her Pokémon, and the Liepard's mine."

"I see. At any rate," Roger began as he and Hayden looked at one another again. "I'll send this card off to the CEO along with a message regarding your proposal; if all goes well, they'll get back to you in a day or two."

"I'd rather they wait for a week before getting in touch with me, but if they're so keen about discussing my proposal that they can't wait a week to discuss it, I'll discuss it with them provided that they understand that I don't want any actions to be taken while I'm on holiday with my family," Hayden replied.

"I'll inform them myself, Mr Thorndyke," Roger nodded. Alexa returned to Hayden with her new Xtransceiver, but remained silent, as his conversation was still going on. "Anyway, I'd best be getting on, so I shan't keep you any longer than necessary. Have a nice day, Mr Thorndyke." He noticed Alexa waiting patiently for her father to finish his conversation. "And you enjoy your new Xtransceiver, little lady."

"Thank you," Alexa said kindly.

"Have a good day," Hayden said as Roger left the shop floor. Hayden looked towards Alexa. "So, what did you end up getting?"

"Take a look," Alexa smiled as she held up her Xtransceiver; it was mostly grey with green as a secondary colour, and the strap was black with white stripes that closely resembled the stripes of a Blitzle.

"Good choice," Hayden smiled. "Shall we be off?" Alexa nodded.

"I'm ready when you are," she replied as she walked out of the store with her father. "Bye, Shelly!"

"Thank you for shopping with us!" Shelly replied as Alexa and Hayden left the store.

"Hey, there you are!" Troy exclaimed as he ran over towards Alexa and Hayden with a Watchog in hot pursuit. After they caught up with her, Alexa couldn't help but smile at the Watchog's goofy grin.

"Hello, Lukie," she giggled.

"Watchog!" he saluted merrily. His voice seemed to be higher in pitch, contrary to the voice of most Watchogs.

"Is something wrong, Troy?" Hayden asked.

"No, Dad asked me to meet up with you," Troy explained. "He and everyone else are in Join Avenue and...hey, girl, is that a new Xtransceiver I see?"

"Yeah, it's only about a minute old," Alexa replied.

"Very snazzy! We should register one another!" Troy said happily as he raised his arm and pressed on his Xtransceiver screen a few times.

"Um, okay, that was...sudden."

"Not as sudden as the registering will be," Troy laughed. Alexa took her Xtransceiver and pressed on the screen until she found herself ready to register a new contact via Infared. Troy and Alexa held their Xtransceivers in front of one another, making sure the Infared receivers were facing each other, until the registration was complete; a small and brief series of musical beeps signified the successful registration.

"Wow, that was sudden," Alexa chuckled. She finally placed the Xtransceiver on her right wrist and faced Troy. "What's Join Avenue?"

"It's a marketplace between Route 4 and Nimbasa City," Troy explained as he, Alexa and Hayden made their way out of the city. Lukie, Tiffany and Halo followed closely. "It was established about two years ago, but it's extremely well known; even the region's gym leaders visit Join Avenue from time to time."

"I can't imagine Brycen visiting Join Avenue then," Alexa laughed.

"You haven't heard? Brycen's not a gym leader anymore," Troy said with mild disappointment.

"Why not? Is he okay?" Alexa asked worriedly.

"He's fine, no worries there; it's just that he's apparently returned to acting," Troy explained. "Especially since PokéStar Studios opened around four years ago."

"That reminds me, are his Brycenman films successful at all?" Hayden asked. "I know Daphne mentioned them two days ago, but..."

"Honestly? Critics liked it better than A Hero's Rising, and they didn't like Brycenman much to begin with," Troy shrugged. Hayden scoffed.

"Critics; they think they know better than everyone else. I mean, they must enjoy trying to make everyone else's opinions so insignificant in comparison," he complained as everyone left the city.

"That's why I hear what everyone else thought of a film I plan on seeing before I watch it," Troy smiled.

"I think we should have before we went to see A Hero's Rising," Hayden laughed.

"Are we going to be making fun of that film the whole time we're on holiday?" Alexa asked. "Because it's going to get old pretty fast if we are."

"Nah, we're not going to do that all the time, Lexie. Well, I'm not going to start spouting one-liners about it every five minutes," Hayden chuckled.

Hayden, Alexa and Troy eventually arrived at Join Avenue, and the sight of the entire area left them in awe. There were many different stalls lined all around the entire tunnel-like area, and the floor beneath them was so shiny and clean that it even reflected the entire ceiling, which was a beautiful red, orange and yellow starry display. The stalls were all varied in what products they sold, which included jewellery, clothing, music items – and Daphne being at that stall came as no surprise to Alexa – and there were even other businesses that one wouldn't expect to find in a marketplace, like a café and a raffle shop. Hayden, Alexa, Troy and the Pokémon approached Daphne in front of the music stall.

"Hey, Daph, look who I found," Troy smiled. Daphne smiled back at him.

"Hi, Troy!" She looked over at Alexa, and immediately noticed her Xtransceiver. "Oh my gosh, that is such a cute strap! I should've remembered that one, I would've bought that one if I hadn't spotted the one I have now!"

"Thanks, Daphne," Alexa said nervously. "Want to register each other?"

"Of course!" Daphne replied as she and Alexa held their Xtransceivers to one another.

"Daphne, where are the others?" Hayden asked.

"Clothes stall," Daphne replied quickly. Hayden and Troy made their way over to the clothes stall, allowing Alexa and Daphne to register one another on their Xtransceivers in peace. Hayden approached Hailey, Lily and Keenan, while Troy approached Harvey and Colin. Daniel was at the book stall on the other side of the avenue, checking out the latest crime novels.

"Hey, everyone okay?" Hayden asked.

"This avenue's much better than I thought," Lily smiled. "I could shop here all day."

"We still need to get to the Contest Hall in Nimbasa City before they stop accepting participants for the contest this weekend," Hayden stated.

"Oh, and I need to make that spa appointment while I'm at it," Hailey said quickly. "I mean, a Pokémon is only as good as their Trainer; I need to set an example."

"You're a Co-ordinator, Hailey," Hayden laughed.

"Even so, I stand by my point," Hailey smiled. "Lily, I was wondering if you'd be interested in joining me."

"Are you sure? I mean, you're the one that's participating in the contest this weekend," Lily said bashfully. "I wouldn't want to intrude."

"Lily, the spa's for more than just Co-ordinators. When was the last time you really relaxed?" Hailey asked. "Like, 'I'm having a spa session' relaxed?"

"Uh..."

"Yeah, I thought so. It's no big deal either way, Lily, but the offer is there if you want it. And for Alexa," Hailey smiled.

"I don't think Alexa's the spa type," Hayden laughed nervously.

"Even so, the offer's still there, for both of you," Hailey smiled.

"Thank you, Hailey; I'll think about it and I'll let Alexa know," Lily said gratefully as she watched Daphne and Alexa moving from the music stall to the art stall and looking at the many beautifully painted Pokémon portraits and masterfully crafted sculptures of wood and clay.

The entire family spent almost three quarters of an hour in Join Avenue, where they purchased a decent selection of merchandise, including some new clothes, jewellery, some artwork and some drinks during the shopping spree. Daniel stayed at the book stall the entire time, carefully examining each book that attracted his initial interest until he came to the conclusion that two of them hooked his curiosity enough to purchase them. Peggy stayed with Hailey the whole time, even though it was nearly impossible to get lost in an area with such a straight forward layout. Even Alexa was enjoying herself, especially considering one of her purchases was a wooden sculpture of a Pokémon she never expected to see as a sculpture; Darkrai. Alexa also bought a dreamcatcher from the same stall while nobody was looking; after how disturbed her sleep was during the night, she refused to take chances on letting such an experience happen again during her holiday. But, eventually, the entire family grew bored of shopping in Join Avenue and left for Nimbasa City and its Contest Hall.

 _To be continued..._


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four – First Impressions**

Hailey was the first to enter the Contest Hall, which was exactly how she remembered it; the main foyer was incredibly spacious with a large front desk with four ladies behind it at the far end of the hall. There were various portraits of winning Pokémon Coordinators with the Pokémon they used for their contests lined all along the magenta walls, each in a grand golden frame and above a gold name plate with the names of the Coordinators and their Pokémon engraved on them. The floor underneath was lighter pink in hue, but was so shiny one could see their own reflection on it. There were many other Pokémon Coordinators and Pokémon of many varieties all around the Contest Hall, but only one of them caught Hailey's eye; she was at the front desk with a Delcatty, with sillky bronze hair tied in a high ponytail, dressed in a long tight-fitting emerald green neck dress with matching high heeled sandals and shawl around her neck, which almost touched the floor. The Delcatty sat next to his master patiently. The Coodinator was speaking with one of the ladies at the front desk.

"And you're now registered for the Contest, Ms Cross. Thank you for your patience."

"Adelina?" Hailey asked suddenly. Adelina turned around and faced Hailey; Adelina had bright turquoise eyes with a ruby red eye shadow, a hair clip on her fringe with a cute little pink heart on the end, large gold loop earrings, a pearl bracelet on both wrists and identical red heart tattoos on either arm. She smiled.

"I should have known you'd be here," Adelina remarked nicely. As soon as she spoke up, Alexa and Keenan became sceptical of this stranger; something about her gave them reason not to trust her. "Are you surprised to see me?"

"Well, yeah, I mean, how long has it been?!" Hailey exclaimed happily.

"I think six years," Adelina replied casually. "I know why you're here, and I look forward to competing against you, like...old times."

"It'll be fun!" Hailey agreed. Adelina soon noticed Hailey's company.

"Oh? I didn't realise you were hosting a field trip," she teased.

"Oh, they're my family," Hailey explained. "You know my lot, of course, but these are my two older brothers, Harvey and Hayden."

"It's nice to finally meet the Adelina Hailey spoke so highly of," Harvey greeted.

"Pleased to meet you," Hayden said politely.

"Charmed," Adelina replied.

"And here's Lily, Hayden's wife," Hailey added.

"Hello," Lily said kindly. "Your Delcatty looks very healthy."

"Why, thank you! Huey deserves nothing less than the best of care; he's such a sweetheart!"

"Reow," the flattered Huey lowered his head and blushed as he smiled. Adelina noticed that Keenan and Alexa were the only ones not smiling.

"What's the matter with you kids? Rough morning?" she teased.

"Uh, it's nothing, really!" Keenan said suddenly. "I-I'm Keenan."

"Pleased to meet you, Keenan." Adelina looked towards Alexa. "What's the matter with you, sweetheart?"

"That's my business, thank you very much," Alexa said bluntly.

"Of course. What's your name, darling?" The more Adelina tried to be sweet with her, the more Alexa felt like cringing. Alexa had little reason to trust her, but, at the same time, she didn't want anyone to notice how suspicious she was.

"Alexa."

"Alexa...that's a very pretty name; rolls off of the tongue quite beautifully, I find," Adelina complimented. "It's very nice to meet you, Alexa."

"And, finally, there's Harvey's son, Troy," Hailey concluded.

"Hi," Troy said simply.

"Nice to meet you. Of course, I remember Colin, the twins and little Peggy. My, haven't you grown, sweetheart!" Peggy only looked up at Adelina quizzically. Hailey laughed.

"I don't think she remembers you, Adelina."

"She was only two at the time, so that's understandable. So, Hailey, looking forward to the Contest?"

"Like I look forward to every other Contest headed my way," Hailey smiled.

"That's good to hear. Sorry I can't hang around for long, but I must be on my way; I have several appointments over the next few days leading up to the Contest, and I must attend each one if I want my Pokémon and I to look our best for the big day. You understand, don't you, Hailey?"

"Of course! I'll see you at the Contest, Adelina!"

"Goodbye." Adelina walked out of the Contest Hall with Huey following closely.

"What a nice lady," Lily commented.

"Yeah, she's a good sport," Hailey smiled as she, Lily and Peggy walked over to the front desk. Alexa sighed.

"Are you all right, sweetie?" Hayden asked.

"It's nothing," Alexa replied. Lukie walked away from Troy, approached one of the portraits and stared at it. "It's just...there's something about that woman...something that doesn't agree with me." Keenan nodded in agreement. Hayden raised an eyebrow.

"I fail to see what would've caused that feeling," he said. "I wouldn't worry about it in any case; we still have the rest of the day to look forward to, after all," he smiled.

"Right." Alexa suddenly noticed Lukie looking up at a portrait and laughed. "Troy?" Troy looked over at his Watchog; the portrait he was staring at depicted a rather handsome middle-aged man with a dazzlingly beautiful Ninetales. Troy chuckled as he approached Lukie.

"Come on, buddy, let's get going."

"Man, Lukie likes the look of that Ninetales, huh?" Daphne smirked.

"Hm." Daniel seemed indifferent towards everything going on around him; in fact, he almost seemed bored. Hailey, Lily and Peggy returned as Troy came back with Lukie.

"Okay, I've been registered for the Contest. How about a visit to the Nimbasa Fairground?"

"Sounds interesting," Harvey smiled. "Though I think most of us are too old for the fair now?"

"Does it really matter?" Hailey asked playfully. "What do you kids think?"

"Sounds good to me," Keenan smiled. Peggy smiled and nodded. Troy shrugged.

"It'll be good for a laugh," he replied.

"I'm in!" Daphne exclaimed.

"It's worth a try, I guess," Alexa said plainly.

"All right then," Daniel sighed; he seemed to be the only one who didn't care for the prospect.

"We won't be there for long, Daniel; just for about an hour, it'll be lunchtime in that time," Hailey explained.

"Fair enough," Daniel replied. As the family exited the Contest Hall, only Keenan, Alexa, Halo and Iara remained. Keenan and Alexa faced one another.

"What do you think of Adelina?" he asked.

"Honestly? I think she's harbouring a grudge against Aunt Hailey," Alexa replied.

"Same here," Keenan agreed. Hayden briefly returned to the Contest Hall and approached Keenan and Alexa.

"What's keeping you two?" he laughed. "Come on, let's get going."

"Okay, Dad," Keenan smiled as he and Alexa followed Hayden out of the Contest Hall, Halo and Iara in tow.

The fairground was bustling with all sorts of attractions and many visitors having so much fun. All kinds of people were at the fairground; couples in love, groups of friends and families, some were even accompanied by all sorts of Pokémon. The city's well-known Ferris Wheel was in operation near the outskirts of the fairground, and seemed to be as popular as ever, contrary to the Indoors Roller Coaster, which, according to Colin and Troy, was the former Nimbasa City Gym, and was rather unpopular. There were many stalls scattered across the fairground; some were refreshment stands, others were hosting all sorts of games one would expect to see in a fairground, such as Hoop Toss and a shooting gallery. There was also a friendly looking man selling helium balloons shaped like all sorts of different Pokémon, including Chatot, Togepi and Oshawott. Peggy ended up in possession of a balloon in the shape of a Skitty. Everyone in the family played at least one game and managed to win a prize of some kind, all of which ended up in the only rucksack between them; Alexa's. Alexa didn't mind, except it became heavier as more prizes were won and more souvenirs were purchased and stored. Eventually, Hayden volunteered to take Alexa's rucksack and hold onto it himself, much to Alexa's relief and gratitude.

Eventually, the family managed to acquire a bench and gathered around it, pondering about what to do next.

"We still have about twenty minutes left, so...any ideas?" Hailey asked.

"I feel like seeing how boring the Indoors Roller Coaster is; I mean, it was pretty interesting when it was a Gym, but I wonder what it's like now," Troy mused.

"Bah; I don't see why Elesa couldn't have just remodelled the entire building," Colin grumbled. "Rather than commissioning me to build her an entirely new Gym from scratch. What was so wrong with the first Gym I built for her?! ...then again, what was right with the first Gym I built for her?" Hailey laughed.

"I agree; I know Pokémon Gyms all have their own themes, but roller coasters..? How is that a theme?" Daniel criticised. "Alexa, tell me, in your opinion, whose Gym – out of all the ones you've faced – had the most ridiculous gimmick to it?" Alexa folded her arms and looked up at a random cloud in thought; it'd been quite a long time since her last official Gym challenge, and remembering every Gym she visited was relatively tough. She remembered the challenges themselves easily, but not necessarily the Gyms and their gimmicks.

"I guess it's between Sabrina's warp panels and Juan's ice floors," she finally replied.

"Why's that, Lexa?"

"With Sabrina...it took me quite a while to reach her, mostly because all of the warp panels looked exactly the same, as did the many rooms in the entire gym, save for Sabrina's," Alexa explained. "I wasted so much confetti in that place..."

"Confetti?" Daphne asked.

"Yeah, I wanted to make sure I knew which warp panels I used before," Alexa sighed.

"And what was wrong with Juan's Gym?" Harvey asked.

"Ice floors in a Water type Gym? Need I say any more than that?" Alexa complained. "I know ice is frozen water, but, come on; was it necessary?"

"What did you do about it?" Daniel asked.

"Nothing, I had Phoenix carry me over to Juan," Alexa replied. "I can't ice skate for the life of me, Daniel, I was not prepared to go through all of that after Pryce's Gym and the Ice Path."

"Fair point," Daniel shrugged.

"I don't know about the rest of you, but I can use a drink," Colin sighed.

"No arguments here," Hayden laughed.

"Let's go, sweetie pie," Hailey said to Peggy.

"Okay!" Peggy jumped down from the bench, but, in doing so, she lost her grip on her balloon and it flew away, up into the sky. "Oh!"

"Halo, can you-"

"Chiku!" Halo zoomed towards the novelty balloon and caught it easily. He was about to fly back down with it when he suddenly saw something running towards the forest outside of the city; he'd only seen it once, but he definitely recognised it. It was...

"Oi, Halo!" Alexa called playfully. Halo looked down at Alexa, who was waving at him. "I know it's a nice view from up there, but come back down here!"

"Ch-chochi," Halo flew slowly back down towards the fairground and returned the balloon to Peggy.

"Thank you," Peggy said politely. Halo smiled at the happy little girl, but couldn't help be concerned about what he saw.

"Halo, what's the matter with you? You look like you've seen a ghost," Alexa said with concern. Halo smiled at Alexa.

"Chochiku!" he exclaimed reassuringly. Troy and Lukie left the group for the Indoors Roller Coaster as the rest of the family left to find drinks. Behind Alexa's back, Halo looked towards the general direction of the forest. Halo then whispered something in Lukie's ear.

After twenty minutes, the family finally left the fairground. Hayden still wore Alexa's rucksack on his back, which appeared to be more bulky than it was before, presumably because of more prizes and souvenirs. Peggy kept a firm grip on her balloon to prevent it slipping from her grasp again.

"Well, that roller coaster was as boring as I heard it was," Troy commented. "It was more like an indoor train track."

"What do you think will become of that old Gym, Colin?" Harvey asked. Colin gave a heavy sigh as he ran his fingers through his hair.

"Who knows? If it's not attracting enough people as a roller coaster, it'll probably be torn down to make room for something more popular," he said, almost regretfully.

"It was a stupid idea to try and keep the old building up and running in the first place," Daniel said. "It was designed as a Pokémon Gym, what use is it if the Gym Leader's decided to abandon it?"

"I think 'moved on' is a better term for it," Lily said kindly. "Although I do believe it should have been remodelled instead of abandoned."

"Let's not worry about neglectful Gym Leaders, eh? How about leaving this city and finding somewhere peaceful for lunch?" Hailey proposed. Halo suddenly panicked; he'd kept a close eye on the forest from the air to check if what he saw earlier had returned, and it hadn't.

"Chochiku!" Halo flew up into the air, but his cry caught everyone's attention.

"Halo, what's the matter?" Alexa asked.

"Cho-chochi-chiku, cho-chi-chiku!" Halo exclaimed.

"We don't have time to go to Lostlorn Forest, Halo," Alexa replied, holding Halo's Poké Ball in her hand. "Return." The single beam of red light shot out from the centre of the Poké Ball and directly at Halo, but the Togetic avoided the beam.

"Chochiku!"

"Halo, return!" Alexa called as another red beam was released at Halo, but, once again, the beam was avoided.

"I don't think he should have had some of your drink, chick," Harvey laughed.

"Halo, what's the matter with you?" Alexa asked. Halo flew down towards her and began pulling her arm.

"Cho-chi-chiku, chochiku chiku!" Halo cried before flying back into the sky again.

"Why is he so desperate to take you to Lostlorn Forest?" Daphne asked.

"I don't know," Alexa replied. "But it's not like him to be so panicky."

"Chochiku!" Halo began to fly away by himself, much to Alexa's shock. To Troy's confusion, Lukie ran off after Halo.

"Halo!"

"Lukie?!"

"What's wrong with those two?" Daniel sighed.

"Go get 'em, guys," Harvey smiled. Troy and Alexa looked towards their fathers in confusion.

"We'll meet you in Join Avenue, don't worry about us," Hayden added.

"Thanks, Dad," Alexa and Troy said in unison. They ran off in pursuit of their Pokémon as the rest of the family headed towards Join Avenue.

"Chochi-chi-chiku chochiku!" Halo panicked as he flew hastily to and from Lostlorn Forest. Alexa sighed. She constantly tried and tried to return Halo to his Poké Ball, but he kept avoiding each beam.

"This is going to take forever." Alexa ran off in hopes of being able to finally return Halo to his Poké Ball.

"Wait a sec! You don't know how to get through Lostlorn Forest!" Troy cried. Alexa looked back at Troy as she ran.

"Don't worry, I won't need to know how!" Troy suddenly noticed someone running straight towards Alexa, but he was looking down at the Watchog at his feet.

"LOOK OUT!" Troy cried loudly. In a panic, Lukie ran away from the small bridge, causing the person he was leading to trip over him. Alexa looked forward in confusion, but.

 _BANG!_

"CHOCHI!" Halo had just witnessed a collision between Alexa and another boy, their foreheads hitting one another. As the boy had tripped over Lukie, he fell on top of Alexa, who hit the back of her head as she hit the ground beneath her, rendering her unconscious. The boy lifted himself up from Alexa and rubbed his head. A Buizel ran towards the commotion and, as soon as he noticed Alexa, his heart skipped a beat, but not in a good way.

"Ow... S-sorry about that," Keith apologised. "I was chasing this..." Keith's eyes widened in horror as he saw the face of the girl he crashed into. Irate, Troy ran over to Keith. "...A-Alexa..?!"

"You!" Troy quickly grabbed Keith by his uniform jacket and pulled him away from Alexa. Halo and Lukie nudged Alexa's unconscious body constantly in hopes of waking her up. "What the hell, dude, watch where you're going!"

"I-I'm sorry, I tripped over that Watchog!" Keith cried defensively.

"That's MY Watchog you're talking about, pal!" Troy shouted. "I don't know who you think you are, but you have a funny way of making first impressions!"

"Chochiku!" Halo cried with relief as he heard Alexa groaning quietly as she began to stir. Troy quickly turned his attention towards Alexa as Lukie helped her to sit up.

"Alexa! Are you all right?! How many fingers do you see?!" Troy asked as he held up three fingers with his right hand. Alexa stared at Troy's hand vacantly for a couple of seconds.

"Look, stop moving 'em..!" she complained. Troy shook his head as he quickly took her left arm and placed it around his shoulders.

"Okay, that warrants you a hospital visit," Troy sighed as he lifted his nauseous cousin off of the floor. "Come on."

"L-let me help, I-"

"No! You've done enough already, mate!" Troy scolded as he gave Keith an intimidating glare. "Besides, you might drop her," he added sarcastically as he began to carefully escort Alexa to the hospital. Keith watched helplessly as Halo and Lukie followed Troy. He eventually sighed and ran back the way he came, Reese following closely. Troy lifted his left arm and struggled to make a call with his solid black and ruby red Xtransceiver.

About half way down Join Avenue, Harvey's Xtransceiver began to ring with a gentle xylophone melody.

"Huh?" Harvey lifted his silver and gold Xtransceiver and looked at the on-screen message. "Troy's calling?"

"He knows where we are; must be urgent," Hayden said worriedly. Harvey pressed the green accept button, and, soon enough, Troy appeared on the screen.

"Dad, it's Alexa!" he said quickly.

"What happened, son?" Harvey asked.

"Some lunatic crashed into her; I think she hit her head, she failed the fingers test!" Troy replied.

"What?! Is she all right?!" Hayden asked with concern. Daniel seemed to be the only one not overly worried about the sudden revelation.

"She's barely conscious as it is, I'm taking her to the hospital as we speak!" Troy explained.

"Troy, is it serious?" Harvey questioned.

"I dunno; she doesn't have a bleeding head injury, but it might still be concussion. Look, can one of you meet us at the hospital?" Troy asked. Harvey and Hayden looked at one another and nodded.

"Hayden and I will meet you there," Harvey replied. "Try not to panic, buddy."

"I'm not; I'm angry at that stupid idiot who crashed into her!" Troy yelled angrily.

"If Alexa has a head injury, is shouting the best idea?" Daniel asked.

"Daniel, this isn't the time for your stupid logic!" Troy shouted.

"Calm down; Hayden and I will meet you at the hospital, don't worry about it. You just focus on getting Alexa seen to," Harvey said calmly.

"Okay, we'll meet you guys there! See ya!" Troy ended the communication with his father. Harvey lowered his arm.

"Will she be okay?" Peggy asked sadly.

"I hope so," Keenan said quietly.

"Hayden? Should we go to the hospital with you?" Lily asked.

"From what Troy said, it doesn't sound too serious, so I don't think ALL of us should be there for a minor injury," Hayden replied. "If it's more serious than Troy thinks, though, I'll let you know, Lily."

"Thanks. Please make sure she's all right..."

"You know I will, sweetheart," Hayden nodded.

"Hayden, I'll take Alexa's bag if you want," Colin offered. "No point in taking it to the hospital."

"Right," Hayden slipped Alexa's bag off of his shoulder and gave it to Colin. "Thanks, Colin."

"Don't mention it."

"Where should we meet you both?" Hailey asked.

"We'll talk about that when we know what's going on with Alexa," Harvey answered. "Why don't you head to Castelia Café and get some lunch?"

"Be careful, guys," Hailey said with concern. Harvey and Hayden nodded at their sister before running back towards Nimbasa City. Laddy held on for dear life.

"Come on, kids, let's go," Colin said nicely as he led everyone out of Join Avenue.

The hospital was unusually quiet; there were mostly walking wounded being seen to around the entire building. The walls of the hospital were a tasteful pale blue with white floors, and the chairs in the waiting area were all navy blue and were comfortable to sit on. Hayden and Harvey avoided the reception area on purpose, mostly because Troy didn't seem to be in the waiting area. They actually came across him in a corridor near resus, with Halo and Lukie. On closer inspection, Troy seemed to be talking with a highly infuriated Ryder, and Troy was in possession of a pink belt with four different coloured Poké Balls attached to it. Hayden and Harvey approached Troy and the Pokémon.

"Troy! Is everyone all right?" Harvey asked.

"Alexa's gone for a scan," Troy explained. "She'll be sent to a recovery room once she's out."

"I take it the scan's why you have Alexa's Poké Balls?" Hayden assumed.

"I think so," Troy guessed. "I was just about to tell Ryder about the guy who knocked Alexa down, in case he knows who it was."

"Let's hear it, champ," Harvey nodded.

"Well, he looked slightly younger than me, maybe by about one or two years, he was wearing some kind of weird uniform and had reddish brown hair," Troy explained.

"Uniform...reddish brown hair...was it spiky?" Ryder asked reluctantly.

"Mate, his hair could make a Starmie look depressing by comparison!" Troy replied. "Why?" Ryder growled as he tightened his grip on both of his arms.

"Because if that's who I think it is, it's Keith," Ryder answered snidely.

"Keith?!" Hayden cried in horror. "But how?! I thought Alexa never said anything to him!"

"If that's the case, I'd wager it was a coincidence," Ryder grumbled. "And that uniform, Troy, is his Pokémon Ranger uniform. Alexa's is similar." Troy slapped his palm on his forehead.

"D'uh! Why didn't I notice that?!"

"Doesn't matter." Ryder turned his nasty glare towards Halo. "Why didn't you just tell her about Keith then and there?!"

"Ch-chochiku, chiku chiku!" Halo shivered.

"I guess that's a good point. But, still, you didn't need to make them meet up!" Ryder growled.

"Chochiku...!" Halo said tearfully.

"Give him a break, he thought he was doing the right thing," Troy said kindly, taking the sobbing Togetic into his arms. Ryder sighed as his ears dropped.

"Sorry, Halo," Ryder apologised. "It's just...I can't forgive him. Not yet anyway." Halo sniffled.

"Ch-chochi..."

A doctor in pale blue scrubs approached Troy. He looked quite respectable; his hair was short and black and wore some rather bland glasses over his green eyes.

"Troy?" Troy looked towards the doctor.

"Is she all right?" Troy asked worriedly. The doctor noticed the two adults.

"And these are..?"

"My Dad and Uncle," Troy replied, indicating Harvey and Hayden respectively.

"I see. My name's Aaron White, the doctor in charge of Alexa's care," Aaron said politely.

"Please; tell me what's going on with my daughter," Hayden said anxiously.

"Well, we've had the results of the scan. There's no major cranial damage, but she does indeed have concussion, as indicated by the initial nausea and dizziness she was presented with when she arrived in the ED," Aaron explained. "We'll be keeping an eye on her for the next hour and we'll discharge her if her condition doesn't deteriorate in the meantime, but I highly recommend that Alexa refrains from strenuous physical activity for a few days and to return for a check-up at the end of the week."

"But will she be all right?" Ryder asked.

"Presuming she doesn't hit her head again and has plenty of rest, then, yes, I'm confident she'll recover completely," Aaron smiled, pushing his glasses further up his nose.

"Thanks, we appreciate it. Can we see her?" Harvey asked.

"I'll check with the consultant; I'm not entirely sure if she's in the recovery room as of yet. I'll come and find you once she's ready," Aaron said kindly as he walked back down the corridor. Ryder sighed and leaned against the wall behind him.

"Concussion...I thought as much. I wouldn't be surprised if Spikeball's forehead knocked her out instead of the ground," Troy said rudely as Keith came round the corner.

"Hayden?" All eyes were on Keith as he approached Hayden. Ryder immediately stepped in between Keith and Hayden and glared angrily at Keith.

"What are YOU doing here?" Ryder asked nastily. "Come to finish her off?" he asked sarcastically.

"Ryder? I-I'm sorry, it was an accident!" Keith said nervously.

"What are you doing here in Unova?" Hayden asked; he was both curious and rather irritated at Keith's presence.

"I-I was on a mission!" Keith explained. "I-I swear, I had no idea Alexa was even here!" Keith found himself feeling even more nervous around Hayden than ever before, perhaps even intimidated. "I-I need to see her; I need to know if she's all right."

"What was this mission of yours, picking flowers in Lostlorn Forest?" Ryder asked rudely. Keith looked towards Ryder sadly.

"Ryder, why are you being so mean to me?" he asked.

"Don't play dumb," Ryder snarled. "Or are you suffering from concussion as well?" he asked nastily, putting emphasis on concussion. Keith recoiled in shock.

"What..?"

"Regardless, my loyalty is with Alex, and Alex alone!" Ryder declared. "As, uh...as far as my Trainer goes, anyway. But, um, I don't mean to say I'm disloyal to Keenan or-"

"You're loyal to Alexa, yet you have no objections with taking instructions from other humans she trusts," Hayden stated. "If Alexa trusts them, you have reason to trust them yourself." Ryder looked up at Hayden.

"Yeah, exactly!" he smiled. "Thanks, Hayden!" Ryder turned his attention towards Keith, putting on a more serious expression. "But, right now, I can't trust you right now, even if Alexa can." Keith lowered his head; he seemed to be greatly disappointed, but, at the same time, he couldn't blame Ryder for taking Alexa's side. Even so, Keith felt more guilty than ever before.

"...I...I see..." To Hayden's confusion, Keith began to walk away from the group. However, he stopped after a few paces and looked back at Hayden, dread written all over his face. "I-I take it you don't want me to see Alexa again, huh?" he asked pessimistically. Ryder looked up at Hayden, as if he was expecting Hayden to forbid Keith to contact his daughter ever again.

"Not while she's recovering from the concussion you gave her, at least," Hayden began, much to Ryder's horror; if he were in Hayden's position, his reply would have been a very strict 'no'. "But, ultimately, I can't tell my daughter who she can and can't see; it's not for me to decide, and she knows that." Hayden sighed. "Let me talk to her once she's feeling better; I'll try to convince her to hear her out once our holiday is over. I can't promise anything, though, but I do think the two of you need to sort yourselves out, one way or another; it can't go on like this."

Keith looked away from Hayden and took his leave without saying another word. Ryder appeared torn; he was furious over what he'd done to Alexa, but, at the same time, he couldn't help but feel some pity towards him. After all, Keith was his friend; as Alexa's Pokémon, he was furious with Keith, but, as Keith's friend... Ryder choked back some tears; the confusion that spawned from his conflicting emotions distressed him.

"Troy!" Aaron called. Everyone watched as Aaron happily returned to the group. "Alexa's been moved to the recovery room and she's asking to see you."

"Does she know we're here, Doc?" Harvey asked.

"I would imagine so, but, then again, I didn't say anything to her and she hasn't asked," Aaron replied. "Follow me, I'll take you to her." Aaron led Troy, Harvey, Hayden and the Pokémon down the corridor.

Keith exited the hospital and leaned against the nearby wall, contemplating everything he was told in the hospital and his 'encounter' with Alexa. He didn't feel nauseous or dizzy, but he felt horrid over the fact that he did bump into Alexa and literally landed her in hospital because of it. He touched his cheek, where he felt the angry and spiteful punch from the girl he loved little over a month ago just outside her home in Johto. Reese kept a worried eye on Keith as he thought about the possibilities of where his currently rocky relationship with Alexa was headed...and wondered if it could even be saved right now. He eventually sighed and slowly walked towards Join Avenue, Reese following closely.

The recovery room Alexa was in was rather quaint. The walls were pale blue, like the rest of the hospital, with the same flooring as the reception area of the hospital, but the bed looked much more comfortable than the standard hospital beds; Alexa was lying on a memory foam mattress with her head on a matching memory foam pillow. There was a vase of fake flowers on the windowsill nearby and the blue translucent curtains were open. Halo was nestled in Alexa's arms, Ryder stood next to her left shoulder, Hayden and Harvey were on her right hand side while Troy and Lukie were on her left, next to Ryder.

"How are you feeling, honey?" Hayden asked. Alexa slowly raised a hand to her forehead.

"Like I've been spinning for about five hours," she said groggily. "What...what happened..? My head's pounding..."

"You've had a knock on the head," Troy explained. "Two, I think, seeing as you hit the ground."

"Two..?"

"The first was literally a head-on collision," Troy elaborated. "And who should bump into you but your stupid supposed sweetheart, Keith." Alexa's eyes widened.

"Keith..?!"

"He was here on a mission, apparently," Hayden continued. "We don't know what the mission was, though; we didn't ask."

"W-where is he now...?"

"We don't know; he left before the doctor came to get us," Hayden answered. He noticed the growing frown on Alexa's face, which screamed 'guilt'. "Look, you don't have to worry about finding him right now. Give yourself a chance to recover first, maybe hear him out once you're back in Almia. You two need to sort things out between you, but, right now, you need to stay clear of him. At least while you're recovering, princess; I don't like the idea of him trying to talk to you while you're recovering from a concussion and causing another heated argument."

"...okay," Alexa agreed. "Dad...?"

"Hm? What is it, sweet pea?"

"I..." Alexa sighed. "I-I just... How did things get so bad between us..?" she asked sadly. Hayden moved closer to her and gave her a gentle cuddle; feeling her father's embrace was only just enough to keep her from succumbing to her sorrow.

Keith arrived at the marvel that was Join Avenue. The sight of so many happy shoppers and clerks lifted his spirits a little, but still felt guilt-ridden over what had happened to Alexa. He sighed and walked down the retail tunnel. Reese followed closely, keeping his eye on Keith until...

"Hey. Hey, buddy!"

"Huh?" Keith looked towards an intriguing little shop with a cheerful man behind the counter.

"Yeah, you with the awesome hairdo! What's eatin' you, pal?" the clerk asked curiously.

"With all due respect, that's my business," Keith said cautiously.

"Just sayin' you look like some beautiful girl gave you the cold shoulder," the clerk said casually.

"W-well, not really, I haven't seen her since I bumped into her," Keith replied truthfully.

"Whatever the problem is, you look like you need some good luck in your day!" the clerk smiled.

"So, what, you're going to try and sell me some bogus lucky charms that don't work?" Keith asked rudely.

"Nah; that's further down the avenue," the clerk sniggered. "But, seriously, this is a Raffle Shop!"

"Raffle?"

"Yeah; you know how a raffle works, right? You draw a ticket and you win whatever matches the number on the ticket," the clerk explained.

"I know how a raffle works," Keith sighed. "What's the catch?"

"None; it's all completely legit," the clerk replied. "So, you interested?"

"How much?"

"Whuh? Dude, this Raffle Shop is part of Join Avenue, but, oddly enough, it doesn't charge for draws. All the more reason to try, eh? You've nothing to lose." Keith sighed.

"Fine, I'll try."

"Take a ticket from the box here and see what Lady Luck has blessed you with," the clerk smiled as he pointed to a box of small folded up squares of paper.

Keith looked very sceptical of the whole thing, but, regardless, he quickly took one of the pieces without so much as looking or even digging his hand deep into the box. The clerk gently took the little ticket and looked at the big black number printed on the paper as he unfolded it.

"173," the clerk read quietly. "That sounds familiar...hang on, I think it's down here somewhere," he said as he knelt down. Keith sighed and waited somewhat patiently for what he suspected was a stupidly rubbish prize that wouldn't be worthy of being a cereal box prize. "Ah, here it is!" The clerk he stood up with a glass case containing a yellow and black egg sitting on a red cushion; on the glass was a ticket with the number '173' taped to it. "Your prize, dude, is this Pokémon egg!" Keith and Reese faced the happy clerk in horror.

"What!?"

 _To be continued..._


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five – Time Out**

"Okay, time out! A Pokémon egg as a raffle prize?! Is that even legal?!" Keith asked rather angrily. The raffle clerk placed the glass case containing the yellow and black egg on the counter. Despite Keith's anger, the clerk smiled casually at him.

"Relax, buddy, it's common for Pokémon eggs to be distributed as prizes," he explained.

"I didn't ask if it was common; I asked if it was legal," Keith said nastily.

"Take a chill pill, dude, it's legal," the clerk smiled. "Many folks give Pokémon eggs to others for many reasons; gratitude, as prizes, whatever."

"It doesn't feel right, though," Keith said cautiously.

"Look, dude, this egg right here? I found it randomly by the stall one morning; no note, no case, no nothin'. I ain't trying to sell you a sob story, pal, but it was clear to me this egg was abandoned," the clerk explained, losing his smile. "I'd have taken it to the Daycare Centre, but that's all the way on Route 3."

"Doesn't sound too far away if Route 4's south of here," Keith blinked.

"You'd think so, but there's Castelia City, Skyarrow Bridge, Pinwheel Forest and Nacrene City to get through as well," the clerk explained. "So yeah; that is one hell of a walk, buddy. So I figured, since I run the raffle shop, that I'd try and give it to someone who drew its number in a raffle. And you won it, buddy."

"But I don't know the first thing about taking care of an egg!" Keith panicked. The clerk regained his smile.

"First time for everything," he said cheerfully. "But, listen, as a favour to the egg, at least, just take it with ya; you don't have to be the one to keep it yourself, you can give it to someone who knows what to do with a Pokémon egg!" Keith recoiled a little. To him, he only knew of one person with the experience of hatching a Pokémon egg; Alexa. The clerk's smile grew when Keith finally took the egg case into his arms.

"Thanks."

"No problem, mate! And if you still want a bogus lucky charm that doesn't work, visit the craft shop further down the avenue," the clerk winked. Keith gave him an awkward smile before leaving the stall with his new egg. Once Keith and Reese were further down the avenue, the clerk sighed with relief, having finally given that egg to someone.

Aaron quietly entered the hospital recovery room after having knocked politely and approached Alexa. Ryder sat on the bed next to her, Halo sat on the headrest near Alexa's head and Hayden stood up, courteously moving out of Aaron's way as he approached Alexa. Aaron smiled kindly at his patient.

"How do you feel, Alexa?" he asked nicely.

"About the same as before," she replied rather groggily. Aaron momentarily placed his clipboard on the bed and held up both of his hands; he held up three fingers with his left hand, and two fingers and a thumb with his right hand.

"How many fingers do you see?" he asked.

"Five," Alexa replied.

"You mean six?" Ryder asked.

"A thumb doesn't count as a finger," Alexa stated. Aaron smiled.

"Well, it seems you've regained your orientation, at least," he said happily as he picked up his clipboard. He looked at the attached medical notes carefully and ran his fingers down the paper as he read. "And it seems that there's been no deterioration during the observation..." He looked at the sterling silver watch clipped to his scrubs. "And it's been an hour now, so," he continued as he smiled at Alexa. "I think you're ready to be discharged."

"Are you sure?" Alexa asked. "I still feel like..." She suddenly trailed off; she couldn't think of a way to finish her sentence.

"I believe you'll have a headache for a while yet," Aaron stated. "Not to worry, it's common for people with head injuries; if your headaches persist, you can take paracetamol if you need to." Aaron's attention turned towards Hayden. "But if her condition worsens or doesn't improve during her recovery before her appointment, bring her to the nearest hospital."

"I will," Hayden nodded. "Thank you for looking after her."

"Not a problem, Mr Thorndyke," Aaron smiled. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to arrange the paperwork for Alexa's discharge," he said as he left the room, quietly closing the door behind him. Harvey smiled.

"Looks like you were lucky, chick; you don't need to spend all your time in here," he laughed. Troy wasn't as relieved as his father was.

"I'll get a hold of Daphne over the Xtransceiver; let her know what's going on," Troy said grumpily as he walked out of the room. Alexa looked worried.

"He's still mad," she sighed.

"I would be if someone I didn't know crashed into Jollie like that," Ryder said. "I'd say Keith has another thing to apologise for right now." Alexa sighed silently; Keith was the last thing she wanted to talk about.

Keith sat down at a beautifully crafted metal bench, placing the egg case next to him as he sat down. He was in a surprisingly well developed area of Route 4; the roads were neatly paved, the buildings looked brand new and stood firmly, and even grass and plants grew in the area! There were two identical water fountains near the bench Keith was resting on, as well as another bench nearby. Each lamppost was identical as well; they all had two lights on either side of them, and the posts themselves were all painted in a wine red colour, fitting the red paving on the side of the roads. Keith could still see some elements of a desert environment around Route 4, but the air felt somewhat cooler where he was. Reese hopped onto the bench next to Keith as he held his Fine Styler in front of him and made contact with the Ranger Union. Professor Hastings appeared on the monitor in front of him.

"Is there a problem with your mission, Keith?" Hastings asked.

"No, I completed it about half an hour ago," Keith replied. Hastings smiled.

"Excellent! I take it you weren't hurt?" he asked.

"Not during the mission, no," Keith answered, rubbing his forehead; he began to feel a slight headache. Keith's glum demeanour hadn't escaped the professor's notice, however.

"Then what's put a damper on your day?" he asked.

"I-I..." Keith sighed and leaned back onto the bench. "I bumped into Alexa." Hastings' eyes widened. "Literally," Keith continued, rubbing his forehead again. Professor Hastings literally stared at Keith in shock. "A-after my mission was over with, I found a Watchog and it kinda led me into Nimbasa City a-and I kinda...tripped over it and crashed into Alexa."

"My word...is she all right?!" Hastings asked. "Are YOU all right?!"

"I think I'm okay," Keith began. "But I don't know much about Alexa; all I know is she had concussion when I asked at the hospital; she hit her head as I fell on top of her."

"I-I see..."

"Professor, why didn't you tell me she was in Unova?!" Keith asked, beginning to sound interrogative. "Did she tell you not to tell me?!"

"We had no idea!" Hastings yelled in his defence. "Erma and I knew she'd taken some holiday leave, but we didn't know where she was going to go for her vacation! If that is indeed why she's in Unova to begin with..."

"Sorry..."

"Keith, the pair of you seriously need to sort this dilemma out," Hastings said firmly. "You cannot keep going at each others' throats, it's jeopardising your ability to cooperate." He sighed. "I take it you found the hospital after the crash?"

"No, I didn't take her to the hospital," Keith replied. "Some other guy did."

"Oh?"

"There was someone with her; he turned out to be the Watchog's Trainer," Keith explained, somewhat with dread about his voice.

"Family?" Hastings queried.

"No idea," Keith sighed shakily.

"Keith, calm yourself. Take a break before returning to Almia; you can give me a full report of the mission when you return."

"Right..."

"Was there something else?"

"Yeah...is it really legal for Pokémon eggs to be given out as prizes?" Keith asked.

"Pardon? What's brought this up?" Hastings asked in bemusement.

"The fact that I now have a Pokémon egg that was given to me as a prize in a raffle just a few moments ago," Keith answered truthfully.

"Hmm...I'm not an expert on the legal side of Pokémon care, so I wouldn't know," Hastings replied. "Perhaps Alexa would know?"

"Probably," Keith said reluctantly.

"Regardless, Erma and I will see you when you return," Hastings stated.

"Roger. Thanks, Professor." Hastings nodded before he ended the communication. Keith closed up his styler and sighed. He looked towards his concerned partner before petting him on the head. "I'm okay, buddy."

"Bui," Reese remarked. Keith took the egg case in his arms and walked away from the bench. Reese followed him towards a coffee shop.

Alexa, Hayden, Harvey and Troy were all at the hospital's front desk with Aaron. The gum-chewing receptionist was on the phone, twirling a thin strand of her long black hair in her fingers as she talked. Fortunately, nobody needed her attention. Halo sat on Ryder's head and Lukie returned to his Poké Ball moments before Aaron spoke up.

"Just to remind you, Alexa, I'd avoid any and all strenuous physical activity until your appointment at the end of the week," he said politely.

"I'll try," Alexa smiled.

"I'll make sure of it," Hayden added, giving his daughter a wink. Alexa's smile grew a little as Hayden faced Aaron again. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. Have a nice day, folks; looks like a good one out there," Aaron smiled as he walked away from the reception desk. Alexa, Hayden, Troy and Harvey also left the hospital, Ryder following behind.

The afternoon sun shone brightly in the sky as Alexa left the hospital with Hayden, Troy and Harvey, and the city streets were busier than before, with many different people walking around, including to and from the fairground. Troy looked at Alexa with slight worry.

"You gonna be able to keep up with us?" he asked.

"I'll be fine," Alexa replied quickly.

"I dunno; Castelia's quite the walk away from Nimbasa," Troy commented.

"I agree; it's too far for you to try and keep up with our pace in your condition," Hayden said gently. "You don't want to push yourself after having suffered from concussion."

"What choice do I have?" Alexa asked rhetorically. Troy took out a Poké Ball and released his Zebstrika from it. The Zebstrika looked at Alexa through the corner of her green eye.

"Ride on Lucy's back," Troy suggested. "It'd only be until we meet with the others at the café."

"How are they doing, by the way?" Harvey asked.

"They were just starting lunch when I called Daphne," Troy replied.

"Hmm. Lucky for us, the sandwich bar in Join Avenue's open now," Harvey mused. "We can have our lunch on the way to meet them."

"Sandwich bar?" Ryder asked in confusion.

"You'll see it when we get there," Harvey smiled.

"What do you think, Alexa?" Troy asked. Alexa didn't really want to take Troy up on his offer, but she knew she'd struggle to keep up with everyone for such a long distance. She sighed.

"Only if it's okay with Lucy; I don't want to impose," she said hesitantly. "Especially since she'd be the one carrying me."

"What say you, Luce?" Troy asked. "Please can you let Alexa ride on your back?" he asked politely. Lucy scraped one hoof along the ground.

"Strika," she snorted as she lowered herself.

"Thanks, Luce," Troy smiled. "That's it, then; on you go!" Alexa still hesitated, but sat side-saddle on Lucy's back. Lucy straightened her legs and stood up properly with Alexa safely on her back.

"Sorry," Alexa said bashfully. Lucy snorted and smiled.

"Zebstrika," she said quietly.

"Okay, let's get lunch," Harvey said rather keenly as everyone finally started making their way to Join Avenue. Troy walked next to Lucy, who was walking behind Harvey and Hayden. Ryder walked almost in front of Lucy, with Halo sitting on Ryder's head the entire time.

Keith sat at one of the many identical white rounded tables outside a quaint coffee shop on Route 4. The chairs were also white and made of metal, but provided little to no comfort for Keith's posterior whatsoever. Reese, however, stood on a box that was placed on the chair opposite Keith just so he could reach the table and, more importantly, the glass of lemonade the little Buizel was drinking through a straw. Keith also had a glass of lemonade next to him, but it had ice in it instead of a straw. Keith's egg case was also on the table, as he didn't want to risk accidentally knocking it over with his foot if he placed it under the table. Keith sighed as he looked at the egg sitting comfortably on the little blue cushion at the bottom of the case while Reese happily sipped some lemonade through his straw.

"What am I going to do, Reese..?" Keith asked suddenly. With the straw still in his mouth, Reese looked over at Keith in confusion.

"Mui?" he asked.

"I don't know anything about taking care of a Pokémon egg! I don't even know what the Pokémon in the egg is! I'm not an expert on these things like Alexa..." Keith sighed. "And seeing her about it now is going to be a bad idea...but what else am I supposed to do? She's the only one I know who knows about these things! Well...apart from Ian, I guess...and Hayden, Lily and Keenan...but I don't think they're going to want to talk to me." Reese pushed the straw out of his mouth with his tongue.

"Bui..."

"Okay, I probably exaggerated, but...you know what I mean; I'm not exactly on their good side after what happened recently," Keith said regretfully. He sighed again. "I don't even know if I can even keep this egg."

"Bui?"  
"You need a license to train Pokémon, right? I'm a Pokémon Ranger; we can't train Pokémon like a Trainer can," Keith explained. He took the Poké Ball that sat on the very top of the case's lid and held it in his palm. "I don't have a license to train Pokémon like she can. Wouldn't even know where to start anyway. I don't know what to do!" Keith groaned as he ran his hands through his hair and to the back of his head. Reese felt sorry for Keith, but soon spotted something that caught his attention; he saw Harvey, Hayden and Ryder walking along the road with Troy and Lucy following behind. Halo still sat on Ryder's head and Alexa still sat on Lucy's back. Everyone had a baguette-like sandwich in at least one hand, and Troy occasionally held out a second sandwich to his Zebstrika for her to eat. Everyone seemed to be feeling happier than before, possibly because they were finally having lunch. Reese watched as the group headed into Castelia City. As soon as the group disappeared from his sight, Reese turned his head towards Keith.

Harvey led Hayden, Troy and Lucy down an oddly quiet alleyway towards an out of place bright red door. Hayden helped Alexa down off of Lucy's back as Troy recalled his Zebstrika back into her Poké Ball. As everyone made their way through the door, they immediately spotted the rest of the family sitting at a table near the middle of the room. Keenan and Peggy had their own little conversation, but, as usual, Daphne was lost to the music flowing through her headphones and Daniel was reading more of "Night of the Clefairy Dance". Unlike other cafés, this one was, for the most part, relatively dark and even sombre to a certain extent; the carpeting was dark red, the walls were chocolate brown with little to no wall ornaments for decoration and the lighting was rather lacking and surprisingly dim. There were many identical squared mahogany tables around the room, but only three of them – at the most – were in use, including the table Lily and the rest of the family had their lunches at. Harvey, Hayden, Troy and Alexa approached the table, with Ryder lagging behind them, and approached Lily and Colin. Colin was the first to notice them.

"Hey, all!" he greeted. Daphne pulled her headphones down to her neck; the very faint sounds of a gentle melody accompanied by rather quiet loving lyrics sung by various male voices could be heard through the headphones.

"Everyone okay?" Harvey asked. Lily focused her attention on Alexa.

"Are you all right, honey?" she asked.

"I think so," Alexa replied. "I just have a headache right now." Lily looked up at Hayden.

"What happened?" she asked. Hayden sighed and folded his arms.

"That so-called lunatic who crashed into Alexa? Turns out it was Keith," he explained.

"What?!" Lily gasped quietly.

"How?" Keenan asked in shock.

"Apparently, he was here on a mission, so it was most likely a coincidence at best," Hayden continued. "I advised him to stay clear of Alexa while she's recovering, but I'm not sure if he listened to me or not; he seemed to be very sorry for himself."

"It's Alexa he should be apologising to," Troy said firmly. Alexa couldn't help feel awkward about people talking about her while she was standing right next to them.

"I'd be willing to bet that none of this would have happened if Halo and Lukie hadn't decided to act out of character and run away," Daniel said rudely. Troy glared at the book-loving cousin angrily.

"Watch it..!"

"Don't start, please," Alexa groaned.

"I'm just trying to make my point," Daniel stated, keeping his eyes glued to the pages of his novel. Alexa sighed.

"I'll get to the bottom of it later..."

"Hey, bros, you haven't had lunch yet, have you?" Hailey asked. "The food here is fantastic! I swear this café's underrated..."

"We had lunch on the way over," Harvey said, slightly boastfully. Hailey looked at her eldest brother in confusion.

"Oh?"

"We had our lunch from the sandwich bar in Join Avenue," Hayden explained.

"That's nice," Hailey smiled. "I heard good things about that place."

"What do we do now?" Lily asked openly. Hayden and Harvey looked at one another with concern.

"Given what's happened, I think we should call it a day," Hayden said. Despite the mutual disappointment, Harvey nodded.

"Yeah, you're right."

"You don't have to on my account," Alexa said kindly. "I can just stay at the hotel room by myself, it's not a big deal."

"There's no point in having a day out with the family if one of us is absent due to an injury," Hayden said. "And it's a terrible idea to leave you alone so soon after a concussion." Alexa frowned.

"Sorry..."

"It's not your fault." Hayden's smile was extremely short lived. "And I appreciate that you don't want us to stop having a fun day out, but, to be honest, it stopped being fun after Troy told us about the crash."

"I agree, Hayden. If Alexa's feeling better later this evening, we can go out for dinner together," Colin suggested. Hayden smiled rather nervously at him.

"I don't think she'll recover fully by then, but I'll let you know later on." Colin nodded at Hayden. Daphne pouted a little as she pulled her MP3 player out of her pocket.

"That stupid Keith, ruining our fun like some sort of professional party pooper," she grumbled as the music escaping her headphones suddenly stopped. Alexa sighed as Colin took her backpack and began sorting out the souvenirs and prizes stored inside.

After a short while, everyone departed from the café and parted ways, Troy and Harvey leaving Castelia City with Colin, Hailey, Peggy and the twins. Hayden kept a hold of Alexa's somewhat lighter and less bulky backpack as he, Alexa, Lily and Keenan made their way towards their hotel. Ryder and Halo were nowhere to be seen, presumably having returned to their Poké Balls at some point prior to Alexa leaving the café with her family. Keenan sighed.

"I can't believe this is happening..."

"What, my accident or Keith being here?" Alexa asked begrudgingly.

"Both. But I just...I don't know what to make of Keith being here in Unova," Keenan moaned.

"Try not to think about it too much," Hayden said gently. "Let's try to stay positive." Keenan nodded and smiled.

"Okay."

"Keenan, that charity Pokémon tournament that caught your interest is on tomorrow night, isn't it?" Alexa asked spontaneously.

"Yeah, I might watch that," Keenan nodded.

"Maybe we could watch it together," Alexa smiled. Keenan smiled a little more.

"I'd like that!"

"If it's a charity tournament, what exactly is it in aid of?" Lily asked curiously.

"I'm not sure; the TV guide didn't say," Keenan said with slight disappointment.

"In either case, do we know who's going to be participating?" Hayden asked with interest.

"Not yet," Keenan said sheepishly. "But there might be the odd Gym Leader or Regional Champion here and there along with other highly skilled Trainers."

"It sounds like an interesting tournament at any rate," Lily smiled.

"Alexa!" Keith cried loudly. Alexa, Keenan and Lily looked behind them in confusion while Hayden sighed and looked behind him with frustration. Sure enough, they spotted Keith and Reese racing towards them. Once Keith caught up, Alexa kept her gaze away from him and Hayden was furious.

"I thought I told you-" He suddenly stopped when he noticed the egg case Keith held in his arms. "When did you get that egg?" he asked on a more calmer note.

"I won it at the raffle in Join Avenue a little while ago," Keith explained quickly. "But I don't know the first thing about Pokémon Eggs; I don't know what to do with it!"

"Wait for it to hatch," Lily said simply. "If you get stuck on how to take care of the baby Pokémon, let me know."  
"..that's it? No real advice?" Keith asked, unintentionally sounding extremely insensitive.

"With all due respect, we've had a bit of a day today, considering Alexa's accident, so you'll have to excuse my wife if she's not exactly in the mood to talk to you," Hayden said rather spitefully. Keith was surprised when he caught Lily nodding in agreement. When he noticed Alexa was avoiding eye contact with him, he felt rotten.

"Shouldn't you be returning to Almia by now?" Keenan asked rather rudely. Keith was startled to see that Keenan had even turned against him. Before Keith could speak up again, Hayden and Lily walked into the hotel with Alexa and Keenan. Reese looked disappointed at how things turned out. Keith looked up at the name of the hotel for a few moments before walking away from the hotel. Reese ran along after him.

At the hotel room, Hayden carefully placed Alexa's backpack on the coffee table and began taking items out of it, including Alexa's Darkrai sculpture and what looked like a shell on a string. Alexa claimed her Darkrai sculpture, dreamcatcher and a small Nidoqueen plush doll. She was about to head into her hotel bedroom when Hayden looked towards her.

"Alexa? Are you feeling all right?" he asked worriedly.

"It's just a headache," she replied as she smiled at her father. "That's all."

"Do you need any painkillers or something?" Hayden queried.

"No, thanks. I'm going to try and sleep it off," Alexa said politely.

"Okay, Lexie. Let us know if you need anything," Hayden said nicely. Alexa nodded before entering the bedroom, closing the door behind her. "Oh, boy..."

"Are you all right, honey?" Lily asked with concern.

"Y-yeah, I'm all right." Hayden sighed as he sat down. "Today's just been a bit...much. That's all."

"What happened at the hospital, Dad?" Keenan asked worriedly. Hayden leaned back and sighed again.

"We established that Keith was the one who crashed into her just before he arrived a few moments later, 'needing' to know if she was all right," he explained. "After Ryder was done being rude to him, I told him to wait for Alexa to recover before he even tries to talk to her."

"Do you think he will wait?" Lily asked.

"Who knows? I told him to wait for Alexa to recover before talking to her, but he didn't seem to take it into account when he just left without saying a word, and he had the deceit to catch up with us at the hotel after that," Hayden replied, with mild frustration. "I don't know what he's going to do now, but I want the remainder this holiday to be free from stress as much as possible, despite the circumstances."

"I'm sure it will," Lily smiled.

"Dad?"

"What's up, kiddo?" Hayden asked.

"Do you think the arguing and disputing could have been avoided?" Keenan asked.

"What makes you say that, sweetie?" Lily asked as she sat next to her husband.

"W-well..." Keenan rubbed the back of his neck together. "When we were trapped in the Union Cave, Alex and Keith were fine until he just started blaming her for not stopping Jordan sooner."

"How did that come about?" Hayden asked curiously.

"It just...came out of nowhere," Keenan replied as he continued to rub the back of his neck. "She asked me if I had Mason, Logan or Kyle with me; I didn't have them with me, and that was when Keith suddenly started pointing the finger at her." Hayden and Lily were astounded; this was the first time they heard about how the bickering started in the first place.

"Just like that? He just started accusing her out of the blue?" Hayden questioned.

"Pretty much," Keenan nodded. Hayden sighed and buried his face in his palm.

"So Keith started it?" Lily asked. Keenan nodded in response.

"Is there something we can do?" he asked worriedly.

"I'm afraid it's up to Keith and Alexa to work things out for themselves," Lily replied. "In the meantime, we can at least make certain Alexa gets plenty of rest during her recovery." Hayden raised his head and sighed.

"You're right. Let's just focus on helping Alexa get better for now," he said with a smile. Keenan smiled and nodded.

Meanwhile, in the Ranger Union's Operations Room, Operators Rhythmi, Linda and Marcus were all sitting in front of separate black keyboards built into one long rail-like desk, which was in front of three incredibly large monitors, each depicting the Almia region, but with different readings on each screen. Behind the Operators was another rail-like desk with a smaller monitor and two keyboards on either side. There was a gateway of sorts towards the Operator's desks on either side of the smaller computer monitor. In front of this monitor were Chairperson Erma and Professor Hastings, both of whom were speaking with Keith, Reese standing next to him the entire time.

"And that's all I have to report about the mission," Keith stated.

"Excellent work, Keith; mission clear indeed," Hastings nodded. "That is all, you may leave now."

"Actually, I wanted to talk to you about something," Keith said quickly.

"What is it, dear?" Erma asked kindly.

"I was wondering if I might be eligible for some holiday time?" Keith queried.

"Let me guess; now that you know where Alexa is, you wish to reason with her," Hastings quickly assumed.

"I...y-yes... I just...I want to make things right," Keith admitted.

"Sounds to me like you're making things worse," Rhythmi muttered.

"Rhythmi..! Please don't eavesdrop on our conversation," Hastings said rather nastily. Rhythmi practically ignored him as she resumed her work. Keith sighed.

"She has a point...I DID land Alexa in hospital today...and now Hayden wants me to stay away from her while she's recovering. Well...he didn't put it like THAT, but, yeah, that's kind of what he meant..."

"Keith, this whole dispute thing must end," Hastings said firmly. "I don't care which of you is to blame – or even if the both of you are to blame – just work it out and stop fighting."

"I WOULD work things out with her if Hayden would let me!" Keith yelled.

"He told you to wait until Alexa has recovered, did he not?" Erma asked calmly. "Then await her recovery before trying to reconcile with her." Keith sighed.

"Keith, how on Earth did the two of you even start bickering in the first place?" Hastings asked spontaneously.

"I don't know. That's part of what I want to work out with Alexa," Keith replied. "And...I want to apologise for hurting her." Erma and Hastings looked at one another before they looked back at Keith.

"Keith, Erma and I have spoken after our conversation," Hastings began. "We've decided to give you a leave of absence."

"How come?" Keith asked with curiosity.

"Aside from the fact that you suffered from a head injury-"

"But I'm fine!" Keith argued. "I'm completely orientated!"

"The last mission you and Alexa embarked on has proven to us that neither of you were ready to return to your duties so soon after the avalanche," Hastings continued. Keith frowned. "Therefore, Erma and I have decided that you shall not resume your duties until you and Alexa have resolved your problems."

"This is for your own benefit, dear," Erma said sincerely. "Alexa was given the exact same lecture when we informed her mother of our decision to give her a leave of absence."

"...thank you," Keith said quietly. Hastings nodded.

"You are dismissed," he said simply. Keith nodded and walked out of the Operations Room with Reese walking along beside him. Hastings sighed and shook his head once Keith left the room entirely. "And to think they were once an inseparable pair...what in the world could have driven them apart like this?"

"That's for them to work out," Erma said solemnly. "I just pray they actually do work things out." Hastings nodded in agreement.

Keith entered his Union dormitory with Reese and closed the door behind him. For the most part, the room looked as though it was rarely used; the double bed with the white bedclothes looked neat and completely untouched, whereas the the double bed with the navy blue bedclothes was extremely messy, with the duvet almost falling onto the floor, a white vest and black pyjama pants sprawled over the messy duvet and three of the four pillows were scattered across the mattress. Keith looked towards the small wooden desk opposite the beds, where he'd placed his egg case, and approached it. He looked down at the desk, and looked at various leaflets depicting Unova's main tourist attractions, such as the Nimbasa City fairground, a luxury liner in Castelia City and PokéStar Studios. Keith eventually picked up a leaflet for what looked like a hotel and looked at the phone number on the very back of the leaflet. Reese climbed up onto the desk as Keith took his mobile phone and dialled the number on the leaflet. As he held the phone to his ear, he glanced over at a photo frame that lay face down in the corner of the desk. Hesitantly to begin with, Keith used his free hand to pull the frame back into its intended position, revealing the photograph inside the frame. It was a photograph of Keith and Alexa; the pair were in casual clothing, with Keith wearing a simple white shirt and blue jeans combo, while Alexa wore her light brown sleeveless turtleneck and bootcut leggings. They were happy and seemed to be sitting at a rather splendid-looking water fountain. Keith stared at the photo with guilt until he heard a voice over his mobile.

"Uh, y-yes, I'd like to book a room please?" he asked rather shakily. "One person and potentially three Pokémon?" He waited for a few seconds before looking rather embarrassed. "Oh, right...just one person then, please." He took a closer look at the leaflet as he waited for another response; he apparently hadn't noticed the "Pokémon accompanied by humans stay for free" statement. "Oh, uh, the name's Keith...Clarke."

 _To be continued..._


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six – Cooling Off**

Keith waited silently and continued to hold his mobile phone to his ear. Reese climbed up onto the messy blue bed with moderate difficulty and watched Keith's phone conversation. Keith took another leaflet in his free hand and examined it; it was an itinerary list for several cruise liners that had Almia as a destination point. He examined the list for the destinations, but quickly set it back down on the desk.

"Let's see, it's Tuesday now, so I'll be in Unova on Saturday," Keith said as he carefully transferred his mobile from one hand to the other. He then waited silently for a few seconds. "A single room with a double bed if that's possible, please," Keith said nicely. "With an en suite if possible as well." He studied the itinerary until he finally found one that had Castelia City as one of its destinations; coincidentally, it was the next scheduled stop after Almia. He quickly picked up the leaflet for the hotel he was contacting and examined it a little more. "No breakfast, thanks." Keith closed the leaflet and was about to stand up and search for something when he suddenly stopped. "Oh, I pay when I check in? That sounds convenient. Thank you. I'll see you when I check in. Bye."

Keith hung up and placed his mobile on the desk. He took a closer look at the itinerary that caught his attention; it seemed to him that the cruise liner in question served as more of a 'public transportation' between regions as opposed to an actual holiday cruise liner, which, in fact, was more ideal for Keith's needs. He suddenly heard knocking on the door; it made him jump very slightly, but he wasn't too startled.

"Come on," he said loudly. Rhythmi carefully entered the room and closed the door behind her. She instantly noticed the many leaflets scattered across the desk.

"What're you doing?" she asked. "Planning a vacation?"

"The first three days might as well be," Keith sighed. "I just booked a room at this hotel, since I'll need a place to stay," he added as he handed the hotel leaflet to Rhythmi. Rhythmi took the leaflet and read the hotel's name.

"Driftveil Star... Sounds pretty cool," she said as she began to read the leaflet itself. "But, if I'm blunt, I would guess you're only going to Unova because that's where Alexa is right now."

"How else am I going to talk to her if I'm not there?" Keith asked rhetorically as he began to tidy up his many leaflets.

"Why not phone her or send her an email?" Rhythmi asked.

"I would if I could; I don't know Alexa's email address and I can't get through to her cell," Keith replied. "So I thought it'd be better if I went to Unova myself."

"When did you get these leaflets anyway?" Rhythmi asked as she took a closer look at the leaflets Keith was yet to tidy up; she even picked up one that had information about the Nacrene City Museum.

"Before I left Unova, I stopped at a Tourist Information Centre in Castelia City," Keith replied. "Dropped them off here really quick before seeing the professor."

"But are you sure going to Unova now is a good idea?" Rhythmi asked. "I know the professor wants you and Alexa to sort your problems out, but can't you wait until she recovers? I mean, you landed her in hospital for crying out loud!"

"Thanks for the reminder, Rhythmi," Keith said sarcastically. "But when I'm on that ship headed for Unova, it'll take me three days to get there; Alexa will have that time to recover!"

"I guess that's true enough. But, even then, are you sure she'll want to see you after you guys bumped into one another?"

"Again, thanks for the reminder," Keith sighed. "Rhythmi, I can't contact her any other way, so what choice do I have?"

"Wait until she gets back..?" Rhythmi asked rhetorically.

"I don't know how long that'll be," Keith sighed. "I don't even know how long she's been in Unova, so she could be gone by the time I get there."

"If that happens, I'll ask her to meet you in Unova," Rhythmi said kindly. "I want you to stop fighting as much as the professor does..."

"I'd appreciate that. Thanks, Rhythmi."

"I just hope you know what you're doing with all this..."

Alexa lay on her bed, staring blankly at the Nidoqueen plush doll next to her pillow. She tried closing her eyes and going to sleep, but, in the end, she couldn't; she constantly held a hand to her head, moaning silently in pain. Eventually, she groaned as she sat up, walked away from the bed and left the room, leaving the door slightly open as she left.

She looked around the main room and only found Hayden on the sofa, reading the TV guide he picked up from the coffee table.

"Dad..?"

"Hm?" Hayden looked up and quickly discarded the magazine. "Alexa! Feeling any better, sweetie?"

"N-no, I couldn't sleep," Alexa sighed. "My headache's bugging me. Where're Mum and Keenan?"

"Ah." Hayden smiled sheepishly. "They went to find some painkillers; turns out we didn't have any around here." Alexa chuckled slightly. "Is there something you need? I can get a hold of-"

"It's...nothing like that," Alexa replied. Hayden nodded and lightly patted the seat next to him, signalling Alexa to sit next to him. Alexa walked over to the sofa and sat next to her father as he wrapped an arm around her. "I-I just can't stop thinking about Keith."

"I know. But you're in no fit state to talk to him about that now," Hayden said. "Give yourself a few days to recover and talk to him about it when you're back in Almia."

"I'm on leave of absence, Dad; is there any point in me staying at the Ranger Union during that time?" Alexa asked. "And if you're going to sell that house..."

"It's not on the market yet," Hayden laughed. "If you don't think staying at the Ranger Union is a good idea, you could always stay at that house or come home with us. Entirely up to you."

"I'd be better off at home with you; no sense in me living in Almia if I'm not on duty," Alexa said sadly.

"I understand." Hayden's smile faded. "So...are you going to tell me why you had Halo with you today?"

"Why do you think I had a reason?" Alexa asked curiously.

"Call it intuition, I suppose," Hayden replied. "I know Halo can make anybody happy, so I guess I assumed you needed to be happy."

"I-I did... Last night, I...I had a dream about the times Keith and I fought while we were in Johto," Alexa said sadly. "I remembered almost every mean thing he said to me since the Union Cave incident. It feels like my conscience is telling me to talk to him."

"I'd think that as well," Hayden nodded. "But not right now; like I said, give yourself a few days to recover first." Hayden sighed. "Alexa, I want to like Keith – he seemed like a nice boy – but after this...and what he said to you last week...I'm finding it hard to like him. I'm sorry if that's hard to hear, but it's how I feel."

"I know. Dad? Did you and Mum ever...did you and Mum ever fight like Keith and I have?" Alexa asked reluctantly. Hayden laughed.

"Yes." Alexa's eyes widened in shock and looked up at him.

"Honestly?!"

"Honestly," Hayden replied, still smiling. "We've argued about quite a few things; the quickest route through Ilex Forest, letting a Heracross we saw get away and, possibly one of the worst fights we've had, me accidentally leaving a gift from your mother in the sports hall at our old High School."

"Really?"

"Yeah; she made me a Skitty doll from her Textiles class and I accidentally left it at the sports hall after soccer practise one afternoon," Hayden explained. "She genuinely thought I'd abandoned it and she was upset; it was the first Pokémon doll she'd ever made, and was really proud of it."

"Did you find it?" Alexa asked.

"Oh, yeah, I found it. Or, rather, a friend of mine found it for me and gave it back," Hayden smiled. "I still have it to this day, in fact. But losing that doll almost made me lose your mother. But, in my opinion, the biggest fight came from Theo's training."

"How come?"

"Being the rebellious Houndour he was, I thought he needed to know who's boss," Hayden continued. "Because I figured you'd need to assert your authority onto a Pokémon that rebels against you. But your mother wanted to try a more gentle approach, which was how she was trying to train him at the time."

"What happened?" Alexa asked curiously.

"Considering the first time she tried the gentle approach ended in Theo almost drowning in Lake of Rage – where your mother and I first met – I argued my case and she wasn't having any of it, so she stormed off somewhere and tried to train Theo on her own," Hayden carried on. "But, as I thought, Theo wouldn't listen to her, so after Tidus and I found them – and stopped Theo from attacking Cheryl – I persuaded your mother to assert her authority onto Theo. Being his Trainer, she was the only one who could."

"And did she?"

"She did, yes," Hayden smiled. "And it worked; Theo stopped attacking and was willing to listen to her, which later on allowed him to build the bridge of trust between him and your mother. Afterwards, she apologised for not listening to me and I apologised for being forceful with my suggestion. And the rest, as they say, is history."

"Is that right?"

"Yep. Over time, we've learned to handle disagreements in a more civilised manner. Eventually, our fights just...stopped."

"Really?"

"I think so. I do remember the odd playful fight here and there." Alexa looked down rather sadly.

"I wonder if Keith and I will get along like that again..." Hayden pulled Alexa slightly closer to him.

"Apologies can go a long way, Alexa; if you have something you think you need to apologise to him for, apologise. I'm sure he'll do the same thing."

"Maybe... But I'm scared that I might make things worse," Alexa sighed. "And ruin our chances of ever getting along again."

"If you want my advice, try to stay calm the entire time you're talking with him," Hayden said kindly. "If you lose your temper, it'll cloud your thinking, and you may even say something you'll regret." Alexa felt even sadder than she was before. "I know it sounds ironic coming from me, but calmness is the key. Try not to forget that, okay?"

"Y-yeah..." Hayden planted a gentle kiss on Alexa's head.

"Cross that bridge when you get to it, Lexie; you still have a concussion to recover from," he smiled. Alexa smiled as she looked up at her father.

"Thanks, Dad."

"Once you've started talking to him, your mother and I will be there for you if you need it. You know you can tell us anything, right?" Alexa's smile very slightly faded.

"Of course..." Noticing her uneasiness, Hayden laughed.

"Provided you want to, that is; we're not going to force you to tell us every little thing that's going on with you, we aren't going to pry. But if you do need to talk, you can tell us anything. Okay?" Alexa's smile grew kinder.

"Okay. Thanks, Dad."

"Of course."

The hotel room door opened carefully as Keenan, Iara and Lily entered the room. Lily closed the door with her free hand, as she carried a white plastic bag in her other hand. Keenan smiled when he saw Alexa sitting with Hayden.

"Hi, Alex! You feeling okay?"

"All headaches aside, yeah, for now," Alexa replied. Lily placed the plastic bag on the coffee table and pulled out a bottle of water and a little white bottle, which she began to open.

"Did you rest well?" Lily asked as she poured two round tablets onto the bottle's lid and began to break them in half. Alexa sighed as Lily then opened the water bottle and handed both items to her.

"No," Alexa replied as she ingested all four halves of the tablets and washed them down with the bottled water. "I couldn't sleep after all..."

"Oh, dear. Well, with any luck, you should start feeling better soon," Lily smiled sweetly. She looked at the round analogue clock above Hayden and Alexa's heads. "The afternoon's still fairly young. What are we doing for dinner again, Hayden?"

"Assuming everyone's up for it, we could go out for dinner. Or we can have it at the hotel again. Though it depends on what Hailey and Harvey are up to," Hayden replied. "I'll call them in-" Hayden looked up at the clock above his head. "About two hours." Lily smiled at Alexa.

"Is there anything you'd like to do in the meantime, sweetie?" she asked.

"I don't know," Alexa shrugged. "Not sure what I can do with concussion."

"Hang on, I'll be back in a sec!" Keenan suddenly said as he hurried off into his bedroom, Iara happily following behind him. It wasn't long before Keenan returned with a black squared bag in one hand.

"Is that your PlayBox?" Alexa asked. Keenan nodded.

"I was thinking we could play with it for a bit," he explained.

"The TV Guide doesn't have anything worth a watch; come on, buddy, let's get it set up," Hayden smiled as he stood up from the sofa.

"Do you still care about her?" Rhythmi asked. She and Keith sat on his messy bed, with Keith sitting silently as he contemplated an answer. His silence worried Rhytmi until he finally sighed.

"Yeah, I do," he replied truthfully. "I-I just...I really want to make things right with her, you know? Even if she doesn't want to even be friends with me any more, just making peace with her would be enough for me."

"I really hope it doesn't come to that," Rhythmi said with concern. "I still remember how happy we all were in Ranger School...I really want all of us to stay friends."

"That reminds me...did you and Alexa ever sort your problems out?" Keith asked with intrigue.

"Yeah; the day after you guys came back after that avalanche ordeal, she asked to see me privately and apologised for everything that happened," Rhythmi replied. "And I apologised for screwing her around and jumping to conclusions about her amulet." She sighed. "But...hearing about her Butterfree... I never would have imagined something like that actually happened to her."

"Yeah. It did. I really hope she'll be willing to hear me out, though," Keith said. "Professor Hastings is right, this can't carry on."

"Keith...some of us were wondering if it was too soon for you and Alexa to come back," Rhythmi said hesitantly. "I mean...neither of you have been the same since you came back from Johto...you seemed more distant than usual. Not just between each other, but with all of us."

"If I can talk to her, that's what I want to resolve with Alexa," Keith stated. He glanced over at the yellow and black egg in the glass case on the desk nearby. "I just hope three days will be enough for her to recover from the concussion I caused..."

"I would hope so."

"Me too." Keith sighed. "Me too."

"Do you have an idea of what to say to her?" Rhythmi asked.

"Just an idea, yeah," Keith replied. Reese walked over to Keith and sat on his lap, looking up at the glum Ranger with worry. "I know what I need to apologise for at least."

"It'll take three days for you to get there anyway; you have plenty of time to think it through," Rhythmi smiled. "And if an apology can sort things out between me and Alexa, I think it can work wonders for you and her."

"I hope so. Thanks, Rhythmi," Keith smiled. He picked Reese up and held him in one arm as he stood up. "Anyway, I should get packing; according to the itinerary, the ferry leaves in two hours."

"Two hours?! Geez, Keith, you could have said something sooner!" Rhythmi exclaimed as she shot up. Keith laughed nervously.

"Sorry."

"Do you even know what to pack?!"

"Y-yeah, of course I do," Keith replied as he approached his wardrobe and took out a black wheeled suitcase with a print of a Tyranitar on the front and a red and black rucksack.

"Let me help you; you'll get it done faster," Rhythmi smiled.

"Thanks, I'd appreciate it," Keith said gratefully.

The television at the hotel room displayed a battle between a large Steelix, a Bagon with a blue "P1" over its head and a Deino with a red "P2" over its head on a large barren wasteland. The Steelix occasionally slammed its tail onto the ground, generating shock waves the Bagon and Deino easily jumped over. Underneath the television was a black gaming console with two controllers plugged in and a red plastic memory card plugged over the player one controller slot. Lily and Alexa seemed to be enjoying watching Keenan and Hayden as they controlled the Bagon and Deino to battle the enemy Steelix. Iara lay comfortably around Alexa's shoulders.

"So what's the story of the game then?" Hayden asked as he constantly pressed the buttons on the controller in his hands.

"Bagon and Deino have to fight their way through the world they're in to find and defeat the main villain from reshaping the world in his image," Keenan explained happily. Alexa's smile died as her heart began to race; the premise sounded awfully familiar to her, and she didn't like it.

"But Bagon and Deino need to find the pieces of the broken Azure Flute in order to get to Arceus, as he's the only one who can take them to the villain's hiding place," Keenan continued.

"Who's the villain?" Hayden asked as he commanded Deino to slam its head on top of Steelix's head.

"Giratina," Keenan answered. Alexa felt anxious; her heart raced even faster and adrenaline rushed through her body like rapids. She quickly snapped herself out of her state of anxiety and took deep and silent breaths to calm herself down. Keenan lost his smile and looked back at his sister through the corner of his eye.

"Do you evolve your characters?" Lily asked curiously.

"I don't think so," Keenan replied rather nervously as his focus returned to the game. "If you can, I haven't found out how to."

"I wouldn't think you could evolve your characters in this game," Alexa said. "I think the game would end after Giratina," she added, sounding very slightly shaky. Lily looked at her worriedly.

"Are you feeling all right, Alexa?" she asked. "Is it another headache?"

"I-It's fine, don't worry about it," Alexa smiled nervously. "It's just...the game's premise sounds kind of scary."

"It's just a game, Alexa," Hayden chuckled; he seemed to be enjoying himself. "Nothing like that can actually happen in real life." Keenan's concern grew as he heard Alexa's nervous laughter, but he tried his best to hide it from his parents.

Alexa's Xtransceiver suddenly rang with a bland chorus of beeps. Alexa looked at her Xtransceiver and noticed Daphne was contacting her. She pressed the green "accept" button on the screen and, soon enough, Daphne's face appeared on the screen.

"Hi, Alexa! Feeling any better?"

"Hi, Daphne!" Alexa greeted. "Yeah, I feel a bit better; took some painkillers not too long ago." Alexa's smile died. "I hope I didn't inconvenience everyone with my concussion..."

"It's not your fault; it's Keith's! He bumped into you, remember?"

"Not really..."

"Oh. Sorry!" Daphne laughed nervously.

"No harm done. Anyway, what's going on now? What's everyone up to?" Alexa asked curiously.

"Uncle Harvey and Troy are over, talking with Mum and Dad," Daphne replied.

"How's Daniel taking it?" Alexa asked teasingly. Daphne giggled.

"He, uh...isn't," she replied quietly.

"I heard that." Daniel's voice was heard rather faintly over the Xtransceiver. Alexa and Daphne laughed.

"So, did you call to check up on me or was there something else?" Alexa asked curiously.

"Well, actually, I was kinda wondering if you and Keenan would like to hang out with us tomorrow or something," Daphne said. "And perhaps even battle sometime!"

"Us hang out with Daniel? I don't think he likes us very much," Alexa said quietly.

"I know, but it'll do him good to spend time with the cousins he doesn't totally despise," Daphne grinned. Daniel huffed faintly over the Xtransceiver. "So, what do you think? Up for it?"

"I dunno...Jollie does want to evolve someday, and perhaps getting her involved in a battle or two might help her out," Alexa mused. "What do you think, Keenan? Up for hanging out with the twins?"

"If you're up for it, I am," Keenan smiled. The video game Steelix roared in agony as it sank into the now exposed lava surrounding the battlefield; the Bagon and Deino characters automatically walked over to the discarded purple ceramic shard and claimed it for themselves.

"Sounds good to me, Keenan!" Daphne smiled. "When should we hang out then?"

"I don't know what we'll be doing over the next few days," Alexa said quietly.

"Whatever it is, we'll be meeting with Hailey at the very least," Hayden said quickly. "As for when and where...that's yet to be decided."

"Okay, Uncle Hayden. We'll think of a plan when we know more about what's going on tomorrow," Daphne smiled. "Sound good?"

"Sounds good to me, Daph," Alexa agreed.

"Oh, I almost forgot! Mum wants to know what you guys are up to for dinner tonight!" Daphne suddenly said.

"That depends on what she and Harvey are up to," Hayden replied. "I'll phone her in about two minutes or so."

"Got it, I'll let her know," Daphne stated. "But you just take it easy, okay, Alexa?"

"Okay," Alexa laughed. "Give everyone our love, okay?"

"Will do! I'll see you later, Alexa. Bye!" Daphne cut off her communication. Alexa lowered her arm as the video game Bagon and Deino entered a volcanic area.

"So, you and Keenan against Daphne and Daniel, huh?" Hayden asked with intrigue. "That'll be interesting to see, that's for sure."

"It'll be your first proper battle in three years, won't it, Alexa?" Lily asked curiously.

"Yeah," Alexa nodded. "I really hope I don't...screw it up..."

"You won't know until you try," Lily smiled. "Whatever Keith said to you, don't let it get you down, sweetheart; you can only do your best." Alexa sighed; what if she hadn't tried her best? Or, maybe, was her best not good enough? She shook the negative thoughts out of her mind and smiled at her mother.

"Thanks." She looked towards Keenan. "Hey, Keenan, since I'm thinking of getting Jollie another battle or two under her belt, maybe Kyle might like one under his!"

"Sounds interesting!" Keenan grinned. Hayden stood up, keeping the controller in one hand. He looked towards Lily as he held the controller out to her.

"Here, take the helm for a few minutes," he smirked. Lily looked rather flabbergasted.

"What..? Hayden, I don't know anything about video games!" she exclaimed. Keenan laughed as Hayden placed the controller in his wife's hand.

"About time you learned then," he said playfully before sneakily kissing her on the cheek. Lily nervously sat down and stared at the television screen.

"Y-you'll have to talk me through this thing, Keenan..."

"Are you sure you have everything?" Rhythmi asked as she watched Keith climbing onto Robbie's back. Rhythmi and Robbie stood outside the Ranger Union, with Robbie looking down at the Union Road. Rhythmi retained her teal Operator's uniform, but Keith had changed into a white shirt and dark grey jeans. The red and black rucksack was securely worn on his back, with the egg case faintly poking out of the main compartment, which was fastened tightly. Reese sat on top of the Spring Form Sawsbuck's head, holding onto one of Robbie's antlers. Rhythmi held the wheeled suitcase up towards Keith, who took it and placed it in front of him.

"You'll hear from me if I haven't," Keith smirked. Rhythmi sighed.

"Be careful, Keith. And, for the love of Arceus, don't screw it up with Alexa."

"You don't need to tell me twice," Keith sighed.

"But did you have to book a room at the hotel Alexa's staying at?"

"I didn't; she's at a hotel in Castelia City," Keith replied.

"Oh."

"Anyway, I need to go now; I'll talk to you later, Rhythmi! Let's go, Robbie!"

"SAWS!" Robbie sprinted off down the Union Road. Rhythmi waved at him until Robbie and Keith disappeared from sight. Rhythmi walked back inside the Ranger Union, smiling a little. As she entered the main reception of the Union, Linda approached her.

"Rhythmi! There you are! Professor Hastings was looking for you! Where have you been?" she asked quickly.

"Helping Keith pack," she replied.

"What for?" Linda asked in confusion.

"With any luck, fixing the rift between him and Alexa," Rhythmi said quietly.

"Oh..."

Hayden walked into the second bedroom of the hotel room. The room shared the same cream coloured walls and dark brown carpeting as the other bedroom, but there was a solitary double bed in the room, with the wardrobe on the right side of the bed and a desk almost opposite the bed. Hayden dialled a number on his mobile phone as he began to lie on the left hand side of the bed. He rested his head on the pillows behind him and waited, holding the mobile to his ear.

"Hello?"

"Hailey, it's me."

"Hi, Hayden! How are you doing? Is Alexa doing okay?" Hailey asked over the phone.

"She seems to be okay so far, thanks for asking," Hayden smiled.

"A little birdie told me you'd be ringing me," Hailey said teasingly.

"Don't blame me, she said she was going to let you know," Hayden chuckled. "Is Harvey still over there?"

"Yeah, he is," Hailey replied.

"Hi, Hayden!" Harvey's playful voice sounded rather faint, but not inaudible, over the phone. Hayden laughed.

"What can we do for you, brother dearest?" Hailey asked.

"Dinner plans; what are yours?" Hayden asked bluntly.

"I have no idea... Colin, do we have any dinner plans?" Hailey asked, sounding somewhat faint.

"Not that I know of," Colin replied faintly. "What about you, Harv?"

"I'm flexible," Harvey answered faintly.

"Same," Troy added faintly.

"Do you think Alexa's up for going out tonight?" Hailey asked.

"Provided we don't go too far on foot, I think she might be, but, honestly, I'm not entirely sure," Hayden replied. "Why, where do you think we should meet for dinner?" he asked curiously.

"I dunno..." Hailey sighed. "Sorry, Hayden, today's been a bit much, you know?"

"You're not wrong there."

"If it's all right with you, I think we're just gonna get some take-out tonight," Hailey said regretfully.

"No, it's perfectly fine! I know today was pretty bad, but maybe tomorrow will be better," Hayden said reassuringly. "Unless you don't want to come out and play, that is," he added teasingly.

"And miss my twins battling against your dynamic duo?! As if I would miss that!" Hailey laughed. "How about we meet at...White Forest?"

"Isn't that a bit ironic if the kids are going to battle tomorrow?" Hayden asked. "I mean, White Forest is arguably the most peaceful place in all of Unova..."

"I know, but there's a lot of space for them to battle in as well," Hailey remarked.

"Okay, yeah, sounds good. I'll let Lily and the kids know; make sure you and everyone else have a nice evening, okay?"

"Will do, Hayden. See you tomorrow!" Hailey said merrily.

"Bye," Hayden said as he ceased his line of communication. He sat up and stood up off of the bed as he made his way out of the room.

"No...!" Lily complained as the video game Deino dizzily fell to the ground. Alexa and Keenan tried not to laugh as the Deino's life count fell from five to four while it stood back up again. "How do I attack that thing?"

"You press the Diamond button," Keenan laughed.

"Having fun, Lily?" Hayden asked playfully.

"I can't get my head around this game," Lily sighed. "Did you find out anything from Hailey?"

"Well, Harvey's still at her house, and they're going to get some take-out," Hayden replied. "Today felt a bit much for her. But we'll be meeting them tomorrow at White Forest; plenty of room for you kids to battle Daphne and Daniel."

"That's a good idea, Dad!" Keenan smiled.

"I agree," Alexa nodded.

"Por!" Iara agreed. Hayden looked at clock above Alexa's head.

"The hotel restaurant's not open yet...looks like there's still time for me to watch you fumble around the video game, Lily," he said teasingly as he walked over to the sofa. Alexa shuffled away from Lily a little, allowing her father to sit between her and Lily.

"Oh, Hayden..!" Lily groaned.

 _To be continued..._


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven – Brawl In The Family**

Robbie galloped swiftly through the quiet Pueltown, racing straight for the Puel Harbour. Keith and Reese watched as a large pearl white cruise ship came into view; they were sincerely glad it hadn't sailed off yet. Robbie slowed down his pacing as he ran along the harbour towards the vessel and eventually stopped. A couple of other Almia citizens were preparing to board the ship as Keith climbed down from the Sawsbuck's back, taking his wheeled suitcase with him. Reese leapt from Robbie's head to Keith's rucksack and held onto one of the shoulder straps as Keith and Robbie walked up the ramp leading to the ferry's entrance and the crewman standing next to the doorway.

"Where're you headed, kiddo?" the crewman asked politely, wearing a smile on his face.

"Unova," Keith replied.

"Right-o," the crewman said politely as he turned towards a machine and pressed some buttons on the keypad underneath it. While Keith took something from his pocket, the crewman pulled a small rectangular piece of yellow paper from the machine above the keypad. Keith gave the crewman three twenty dollar bills in exchange for the ticket. The crewman looked at the Sawsbuck behind Keith, which made Robbie feel a little anxious. "Is this your whole party?"

"Party?" Keith asked in confusion.

"Yep; are you only travelling with those two Pokémon?" the crewman elaborated.

"Oh," Keith sighed with relief. "Yeah, I am. I have a Pokémon egg in my pack, but it hasn't hatched yet."

"We don't normally count a Pokémon egg unless it hatches," the crewman laughed. "Right, let's find a cabin for ya." He looked inside a metal box next to the ticket machine and pulled out a white card with a large red stripe on it and the number "23D" in bold black lettering. "This one should do it," the crewman smiled as he handed the card over to Keith.

"A key card?"

"To your cabin, kiddo; you'll need somewhere to kip for the next three days!" the crewman laughed. "We have plenty of cabins here, so if that one doesn't suit you, come and find me or any of my colleagues and we'll get you a bigger cabin."

"Thank you," Keith smiled gratefully. The crewman nodded.

"You'll find the ship's itinerary and meal schedules in your cabin; enjoy your trip." With that, the crewman allowed Keith and Robbie to finally enter the ship. Robbie nodded courteously at the crewman as he passed. "You're welcome."

Keith eventually entered the designated cabin, after using his key card to unlock the door. The cabin was smaller than his room at the Ranger Union, but Keith was glad it was big enough for Robbie to fit in. The cabin itself looked modest and quaint; it had two identical single beds opposite one another, the carpeting was a pale shade of blue and there was a small chest of drawers in between the two beds. There was also a doorway next to Keith, which, as he found out when he opened it, led to the rather cosy en suite. Keith closed the cabin door, sat the suitcase and rucksack down in front of the chest of drawers, pulled out the egg case from the rucksack and placed it on top of the chest of drawers before lying down on one of the beds. Robbie carefully lay himself down on the other bed as Reese hopped onto Keith's chest. Reese lay down as Keith began to stroke the Buizel's bone dry fur. After a few minutes, Keith and Robbie both felt the ship beginning to move. Keith sighed.

"Okay. We're officially on our way to Unova now. Let's hope for the best."

"Saws," Robbie nodded.

"Bui," Reese agreed. Keith looked back at the yellow and black egg sitting inside its glass case.

"I wonder what it'll hatch into?" he asked quietly.

The next morning in Unova was sunny and bright, with a very slight cooling breeze flowing through the atmosphere. Several large towering trees stood firmly in the incredibly peaceful forest, the grass beneath them was fresh and vibrant, and the water in the rather vast pond was cold and incredibly fresh. The Pokémon Centre was the only real building in the entire forest, but a set of stairs led to a doorway built into the largest of the forest's trees. A flash of white light shone briefly in one small part of the entire forest, and, in an instant, a Gardevoir appeared, holding both hands over her chest. Behind her were Hayden, Lily, Keenan, Iara and Alexa.

"Quiet as usual. Easily my favourite place in the Unova region," Hayden said as he admired the serene atmosphere of the forest. Alexa opened her eyes and breathed in the crisp air.

"Do you feel all right?" Lily asked.

"Yeah, I think so," Alexa replied. "I just didn't want to get a headache from the teleportation. That's all."

"Sounds reasonable," Lily smiled. Keenan looked around the forest as Iara climbed onto his head.

"I don't see anyone else here," he remarked.

"They shouldn't be too long unless they're inside the Pokémon Centre," Hayden stated. He looked around the forest himself and soon looked up at the sky. "Oh! There's Hailey, at least."

Alexa, Lily, Keenan and Iara looked up and spotted four large Pokémon flying overhead; the Pokémon were a Salamence, Altaria and two Unfezant. One of the Unfezant had a magenta crest on its head and a mint green underbelly, whilst the other had no crest on its face and a chocolate brown underbelly. The four Pokémon landed on the grass near the Pokémon Centre as Hayden, Lily, Keenan and Alexa approached them.

"Travelling in style, Colin?" Hayden asked playfully.

"It's a nice day for David to stretch his wings," Colin smiled as he petted his Salamence on the head. "Isn't that right, mate?"

"Yrrgh," David nodded happily. Hailey climbed off of her Altaria's back, causing a blue and white beachball to roll down the Altaria's spine.

"So, you ready for a battle?" she asked Alexa and Keenan. Keenan nodded.

"Yep! If the twins are up for it, anyway," he said cheerfully.

"Of course we are!" Daphne smiled as she and Peggy dismounted from the crestless Unfezant. Peggy carried the little Swablu in her arms. "The question is, are you?"

"I think the question is if Alexa's up for it," Daniel stated as he dismounted from the crested Unfezant one handed; he held a rather thick book in his left hand. "Considering her concussion, I mean."

"I should be okay," Alexa replied with uncertainty.

"I hope so," Daniel stated, rather coldly.

"Where's Harvey?" Hayden asked quickly.

"On his way?" Hailey replied as she shrugged. The crestless Unfezant looked up.

"Fezant!" Daphne looked at the Unfezant in confusion.

"What's up, Sally?"

"Fezant!" Sally replied as she pointed at the sky with her wing. Everyone looked up at the sky and spotted a Dragonite and an Archeops descending towards the ground. As soon as the pair touched the ground, Harvey and Troy climbed off of their backs.

"Hey, how's it going?" Harvey asked casually.

"We've just got here, so we don't know," Hailey smiled.

"But what kept you? Hayden got here first," Colin asked with a small laugh.

"Naomi called," Harvey replied, losing his smile.

"I see. Sorry, I shouldn't have asked," Colin apologised.

"No, don't worry about it," Harvey said kindly. "I just told her to call back later tonight, it's not a big deal." The Dragonite looked at Harvey worriedly. "I'm fine, Rena."

"Drrrgh..." Peggy approached the large Archeops curiously, who, in turn, looked down at the little girl in confusion.

"If we're going to watch a battle, why don't we get some drinks?" Troy suggested. Peggy held one arm up to Archeops, who just stared at her palm in bemusement.

"Sounds good; I can use the time to get prepared," Alexa agreed. Archeops tilted its head and blinked.

"We can all use the preparation time," Daniel stated. "It's only fair."

"Yep!" Keenan agreed.

"Okay, Troy and I can get the drinks," Harvey smiled.

"I'll go with you; you might need the extra pair of hands," Colin volunteered.

"Sounds good," Harvey nodded. "Thanks. Let's go then. Back in a bit." Harvey, Troy and Colin walked towards the Pokémon Centre as Alexa and Keenan walked away from the group. Keenan spotted a lone Beautifly hovering in the sky; it waited a few seconds before it flew away. Keenan blinked, but thought nothing of it and followed Alexa.

Alexa took a black Poké Ball with a golden centre and red rings around the top half from the back of her pink belt while Keenan took a normal red and white Poké Ball from his pocket. The pair opened their Poké Balls and released the little Buneary with a green ribbon around her neck and a Riolu with a red and yellow band around his waist.

"Buneary~!"

"Buh!" Alexa picked up her Buneary and held her with both hands while Keenan crouched to the Riolu's level.

"You ready to battle, Kyle?" Keenan asked. Kyle smiled.

"Buh-HUH!" he replied keenly.

"How about you, Jollie? Are you ready for a battle?" Alexa asked.

"Bun, Buneary!" Jollie replied happily. "Bun! Bun-buneary!" Alexa placed the happy Buneary on her shoulder as she took two Poké Balls from her belt and expanded them.

"I knew you'd say that. Phoenix, Ryder, front and centre!" Alexa opened both Poké Balls, releasing her fuzzy Lucario and slender Charizard from their respective Poké Balls.

"Need us for anything?" Ryder asked.

"Not really; Jollie just wants you two to watch her battle," Alexa replied. "Kyle's battling too."

"Oh, really?" Ryder asked as he looked at the little Riolu walking over to him. "Oh, sweet! I don't think I ever saw you battle before!"

"Buh," Kyle shook his head.

"So my little sister and aura buddy are battling side by side?" Ryder asked eagerly as his tail began to wag quickly. A smile and a nod from Alexa made Ryder's eyes light up with delight. "Aw, that's so awesome!"

"Alex, is Phoenix going to watch as well?" Keenan asked.

"Yep. It felt appropriate for the mentor to watch his student battle," Alexa smiled.

"Phoenix never mentored Jollie?" Keenan said in confusion.

"Buneary...!" Jollie rubbed the back of her neck nervously, causing the little golden bell around her ribbon to jingle a little.

"Not until recently," Alexa explained.

"Still yearning to evolve, I take it?" Keenan questioned.

"Neary," Jollie nodded. Alexa looked towards the twins; they had their backs turned against her, and, through the corner of her eye, spotted Hailey talking with Hayden and Lily. Jollie watched the confused Archeops staring at the little girl holding her arm up to its head.

"Daphne, Daniel! You guys ready yet?" she called. Daphne turned her head to face Alexa.

"Why, are you?" she called back.

"I am, at least!" Keenan looked at Kyle, who gave the boy a definite nod. Keenan nodded in return and faced Daphne.

"So are we!" Keenan called.

"Excellent!" Daniel smiled as he turned around. "We're ready when you are!" Harvey, Troy and Colin exited the Pokémon Centre with various soda cans in their arms.

"Just in time," Hailey smiled. "Looks like they're starting."

"Oh, really? Great!" Harvey smiled. The adults sat on the nearby wooden bench as Phoenix and Ryder approached them and the other Pokémon. Peggy ran over to Hailey, who lifted her up and sat her on her lap. Daniel and Daphne returned their Unfezant to their Poké Balls and confronted their cousins as Jollie and Kyle stepped forward.

"Okay, ready?" Daphne called.

"Ready!" Alexa and Keenan replied; Alexa still sounded slightly uncertain. Daphne and Daniel each took a Poké Ball and tossed them in the air.

"Mary, you're up!"

"Paul, go!"

Both Poké Balls opened with a loud pop and released a Plusle and a Minun from the white streams of light.

"PLUH!"

"MINUH!"

"Hm; this should be interesting," Colin remarked. Hailey nodded.

"Mary and Paul are known for being a superb combination," she stated. "Heck, they were meant to be together, like Roland and Rhonda."

"Hello, everyone!" Hailey was stunned to see Adelina and her Delcatty walking towards them.

"Adelina? Fancy seeing you here," Hailey remarked.

"It's a beautiful day, is it not? I decided to take advantage of the lovely weather to practise my Pokémon's Contest appeal, but my Beautifly saw you during practise and, well, here we are," Adelina explained politely. Keenan overheard her explanation and started to grow suspicious. Nevertheless, he retained his focus on the battle that was yet to start. "So, what's going on?"

"My twins are about to battle Hayden's duo," Hailey explained. "Why don't you watch with us?"

"Oh, really? I'd be delighted!" Adelina replied graciously. Hailey shuffled over a little, but Adelina sat on the arm rest of the bench instead, much to Peggy's confusion. Ryder glanced over at the newcomer and glared at her. A nudge from Phoenix caught the Lucario's attention.

"Uh, sorry, Phoenix."

"So, are you ready?" Daniel asked, rather impatiently.

"Of course!" Keenan replied.

"Then let's begin!" Daphne exclaimed eagerly.

"Kyle, use Shadow Claw!" Keenan instructed quickly. Kyle lunged at the Minun with the lump on his arm glowing in an eerie dark purple glow, which grew into three large claws as it enveloped his paws.

"Jollie, Fire Punch!" Alexa called. Jollie hopped towards the Plusle with the fluff on both of her ears burning rather fiercely.

"Mary, Helping Hand!" Daphne exclaimed.

"Paul, Spark attack, go!" Daniel shouted. Mary and Paul touched hands as Mary sent blue electric sparks from her cheek, which flowed down her arms and ultimately into Paul's cheeks. Mary began to spin her Minun ally and tossed him at Kyle and Jollie as he unleashed a large burst of electricity from his cheeks. The electricity was powerful enough to strike both Kyle and Jollie in one hit. Kyle and Jollie fell to the ground, but managed to stand back up again.

"Jollie! Are you okay?!" Alexa panicked.

"This isn't working out...Kyle, use Drain Punch!" Keenan yelled. Kyle growled at Paul and charged at him with a clenched fist surrounded by swirling green energy.

"Paul, Mimic!" Daniel shouted. Paul leapt in the air to avoid Kyle's Drain Punch as his tail and blue ear tips shone brightly as he kept his eye on Kyle's attack.

"Jollie, Low Kick!" Alexa cried.

"Mary, Helping Hand again!" Daphne yelled. Mary leapt into the air, avoiding Jollie's swerving foot as she fired a bolt of blue electricity straight at Paul, who absorbed it into his cheeks.

"Now, Drain Punch!" Daniel yelled.

"Kyle, Aura Sphere!" Keenan yelled.

"Pardon?" Adelina was astonished at the odd instruction. Sure enough, however, Adelina witnessed Kyle forming a sphere of blue aura in his palm and firing it at the Minun, who was about to attack Kyle with a punch surrounded in swirling green energy. Paul was blown backwards and crashed into the ground.

"Oh, no, Paul! Mary, go help him!" Daphne cried.

"Jollie, Return!" Alexa instructed suddenly. Jollie's body became surrounded in a divine white glow as she tackled into the Plusle while her guard was down.

"I-I don't understand this! How is that Riolu able to use aura!?" Adelina asked in astonishment.

"In extremely rare cases, they can," Harvey explained.

"Well, this is the first time I've seen a Riolu using Aura Sphere...where did he ever come across a Pokémon that special?" Adelina asked with intrigue.

"From Alexa," Hayden replied. "She rescued him from some criminals in the Almia region. He was originally left in her care, but, given the fluffy Lucario over there," he continued, hinting towards Ryder. "Alexa decided to give him to Keenan." Adelina looked over at the Lucario observing the battle.

"Aww, he's so adorable! He looks very cuddly!" Adelina smiled cheerfully.

"Daniel, we're going to have to step up our game," Daphne said quietly. Daniel looked at her, looking very disgruntled.

"Agreed," he replied. The twins nodded at each other before facing the battlefield. "Paul, Lucky Chant, go!"

"Mary, Light Screen!" Daphne yelled. As Mary's ears and tail shone in a brilliant yellow glow and causing a yellow hexagonal barrier to form around her and Paul, Paul placed his paws together and began chanting inaudibly, causing a small ring of white sparkling light to circle around him and Mary.

"What do we do, Alex?" Keenan asked quietly. Alexa observed the situation Daphne and Daniel presented them with, but had troubles concentrating. Jollie looked back at Alexa with concern.

"Bun! Buneary!" she cried.

"Yo, Alex! Focus!" Ryder called. Alexa looked towards Ryder in confusion. "Whatever you're thinking about, forget it! Concentrate!" Alexa looked at the seemingly well-protected Plusle and Minun again.

"Jollie, Agility!" Alexa finally shouted. Jollie smiled as she began to hop rapidly around Mary and Paul.

"Don't look at her!" Daphne cried quickly.

"Now, Paul, use Helping Hand!" Daniel yelled. Keenan suddenly felt a slight nudge from Alexa and looked up at her. She hinted towards Paul's electric sparks hitting Mary before looking at her rapidly hopping Buneary. Keenan smiled happily.

"Kyle, Copycat!" he suddenly yelled.

"What?!" Daniel exclaimed in horror. Kyle's body burned in a light blue glow and fired electric sparks at Jollie, who skidded to a halt just in time to let the sparks hit her body.

"Now use Sky Uppercut!" Alexa cried. Jollie's right ear fluff shone in a glistening pale blue glow as she curled it up and landed an uppercut punch with it as she bounced towards Mary. The Plusle cried out in pain as she flew upwards, her hexagonal barrier breaking like glass as Jollie's ear fluff struck underneath her chin.

"No, the Light Screen!"

"Forget it, Daphne, they're using mostly physical attacks! It won't do Paul and Mary any good," Daniel said grumpily. "Paul, use Thunder!"

"Mi-NUUH!" With every ounce of energy he had, Paul unleashed an enormous burst of electricity from his entire being, which fired straight into the air. Jollie, unfortunately, landed straight into the electricity, and cried out in sheer agony as the electricity coursed through her body.

"Jollie!" Alexa cried worriedly. Ryder also began to panic, showing concern for the little Buneary, but Phoenix looked on with indifference. The electricity knocked Jollie down to the ground with great force. "Jollie! Are you okay?! Say something!" Alexa pleaded.

"Oh, dear...I hope Jollie's all right," Lily said worriedly. Hayden nodded in agreement and sighed a little.

"Still, I don't think she's in any real danger. It's not Cynthia Alexa's dealing with," he stated.

"Cynthia?" Adelina questioned.

"Alexa battled the Sinnoh League Champion – Cynthia – three years ago," Hayden explained. "There was no victor, but let's just say it wasn't the simple and clean battle Alexa was expecting."

"Not to mention this is Alexa's first legitimate battle since she left to become a Pokémon Ranger in Almia," Lily added. "Still, she's doing very well, considering."

"Seems like it," Colin agreed. "That trick with Copycat was actually a smart move."

"I agree; you don't see that move every day," Hailey chuckled.

"I'll say," Colin smiled.

"Is the bunny going to be okay?" Peggy asked worriedly.

"Blu, Blu," Piper chirped sadly.

"I don't think this fight's over yet, kiddo," Troy smiled.

"Hailey, I don't understand what your brother meant about this whole Cynthia business," Adelina whispered.

"Long story short, all of Alexa's Pokémon needed emergency medical treatment after that fight, despite being incredibly lucky to escape with their lives," Hailey replied in a low murmur. Adelina looked at the battle with interest.

Jollie moaned as she strained onto her feet. She shook her head quickly as she hopped out of the ditch she left in the ground.

"Bun!" Alexa sighed with relief.

"Thank goodness. Okay, Jollie, Fire Punch, let's go!" she declared.

"Buneary!" Jollie hopped quickly towards Mary with both of her ears burning in dazzling red flames.

"Kyle, Aura Sphere!" Keenan yelled.

"Mary, Mimic that Aura Sphere!" Daphne exclaimed.

"Paul, Spark attack!" Daniel shouted. Paul conjured up electric sparks from his cheek, which surrounded him as he ran quickly towards Jollie. The tips of Mary's ears and her tail shone beautifully as she tried to dodge the incoming Aura Sphere; despite her efforts, the sphere of blue aura struck her shoulder.

"Nice shot!" Keenan complimented. Jollie suddenly stopped in her tracks and jumped into the air, causing Paul to accidentally cease his attack and look up in confusion.

"Now, Mary!" Daphne exclaimed. Mary held both paws together and spawned a sphere of silver aura and fired it at the falling Buneary.

"Kyle, stop that sphere!" Keenan yelled. Kyle raced towards the silver sphere, but Paul regained his composure and finally restarted his Spark attack, tackling into the Riolu. "Kyle!"

"Jollie, batter up!" Alexa smirked.

"Bun!" Jollie spun around in the air, causing her flaming ears to hit the silver sphere, which resulted in a small explosion that pushed the little Buneary backwards. She landed on her feet, near Kyle and Paul. Paul ran away from Kyle and stood next to Mary.

"Hmm. Seems we're at a stalemate, wouldn't you agree?" Daniel asked with intrigue.

"Perhaps. But someone has to yield sooner or later, "Alexa retorted, with a smile on her face. "Jollie, Return!"

"Buh-neary!" A heavenly white light enveloped Jollie's body as she ran towards Paul.

"Kyle, Drain Punch!" Keenan commanded.

"Paul, you use Drain Punch as well!" Daniel exclaimed.

"Mary, Aura Sphere!" Daphne cried.

"PLUH!" Mary conjured up her sphere of silver aura in her paws.

"MINUH!" Paul raced towards the Riolu with one paw veiled in a spiralling green light, dodging the attacking Buneary on his way. Jollie quickly leapt in the air to avoid the silver sphere and dived head first towards the perplexed Plusle.

The two Drain Punches clashed, resulting in a small explosion that knocked both Kyle and Paul away from each other. They both skidded along the ground on their feet and stood up properly.

Mary had no time to dodge and was ultimately hit by Return with full force. Jollie managed to leap away from Mary, who skidded along the ground on her back. Jollie landed on her feet next to Kyle while Paul helped Mary onto her feet.

"Paul, Helping Hand!" Daniel shouted.

"Mary, Thunder attack, now!" Daphne exclaimed.

"Kyle, use Copycat!" Keenan yelled suddenly. Despite not knowing what to copy, Kyle took it upon himself to choose a target; his body began to burn bright yellow.

"Okay, Jollie, that'll leave you clear for a Sky Uppercut!" Alexa stated.

"Buneary!" Jollie raced towards Paul as her right ear fluff glowed in a pale blue light.

"Paul, quick, use Thunder!" Daniel cried.

"PLUH!" Mary's gigantic burst of electricity shot into the air and began to dive down towards the running Buneary.

"BUH!" Kyle unleashed his own shot of electricity into the air, which dived down and miraculously clashed with Mary's bolt, which released many small bursts of electricity down towards the ground.

Jollie sped through all of the bolts and crouched in front of Paul, who was ready to release a large stream of electricity of his own. However, Jollie quickly extended her glowing ear as she leapt upwards, knocking the Minun in the chin. Jollie rolled in mid-air, causing her to land feet first, as Paul fell flat on his back. Paul struggled onto his feet, groaning as he strained himself.

"M-minuh..!" Paul finally managed to sit up at the very least. He continued to strain himself as he struggled to stand up.

"Mary, Helping Hand, quick!" Daphne cried.

"Kyle, Aura Sphere!" Keenan exclaimed.

"Jollie, show Ryder your new trick!" Alexa grinned. Ryder looked expectantly at the little Buneary as she held both paws in front of her, forming a sphere of deep purple energy, which, in addition, constantly emitted black and magenta static all around it. At the same time, Kyle prepared his own sphere of blue aura. Daphne and Mary panicked, despite the Plusle sending blue electricity from her cheeks to her weakened ally.

"Mary, Light Screen!" Daphne cried. Mary quickly halted her electric attack as Kyle and Jollie fired their Aura Sphere and Shadow Ball attacks respectively. Mary looked at the incoming spheres as her tail and ears shone in a magnificent yellow light with fear. However, before the Light Screen could fully develop and before she could move away, the Aura Sphere struck her chest while the Shadow Ball crashed into Paul's face, knocking him down again. Both Mary and Paul fell in defeat, Aura Sphere and Shadow Ball having rendered them unconscious.

"Bun-neary!" Jollie hopped up and down with absolute delight until she stopped to look at her paws; her ears flopped downwards as a look of disappointment crossed her face. "Bun-neary..." Alexa laughed as she lifted Jollie into her arms.

"It's okay, Jollie, you'll find something that'll trigger your evolution soon," she said reassuringly. Jollie smiled and happily hugged Alexa.

"Bun-neary!"

"That was great, Kyle!" Keenan smiled.

"Buh!" Kyle held up his paw in front of Keenan. Keenan lightly slammed his palm against the paw, giving the Riolu the high-five he was wanting. Daniel and Daphne returned their Minun and Plusle to their respective Poké Balls.

"That didn't turn out like I'd expected it to," Daniel said glumly.

"Give Mary and Paul some slack; they're still training, after all," Daphne said cheerfully.

"I wasn't talking about Mary and Paul," Daniel replied quietly, looking discreetly at Kyle and Jollie. He and Daphne approached Alexa and Keenan as Kyle made his way onto Keenan's head.

"Great battle, you guys!" Daphne smiled.

"Are Paul and Mary going to be okay?" Alexa asked worriedly.

"Yeah, they should be," Daphne replied kindly.

"Seems like you still have your skills as a Trainer, Alexa," Daniel commented. "Why did you decide to throw it away to become a Pokémon Ranger?"

"I didn't want to put my Pokémon through the pain Phoenix went through against Cynthia," Alexa replied as Phoenix, Ryder and Iara approached them.

"That's the Sinnoh Champion, though; not every Trainer in the world is as stoic as she seems to be," Daniel replied, trying to sound nice. Alexa smiled kindly.

"Thanks, Daniel." Daniel gave her an incredibly tiny smile and nodded.

"Speaking of Cynthia," Ryder began. "Do you still think Halo's dad is her Togekiss?" he asked curiously.

"Is that true?" Daphne asked in shock.

"I think so," Alexa replied. "I don't know for absolute certain, but it would make sense. I mean, he hatched from the egg she gave me. Knowing that she had a Togekiss while the egg she gave me hatched into a Togepi...I can't see it as a coincidence, if I'm honest."

"Agreed," Daniel nodded. Alexa looked towards Phoenix as the adults began to stand up from the bench.

"What did you think of Jollie's performance, Phoenix?" she asked. Phoenix looked down at the little Buneary, who looked up at him anxiously. A smile and a nod from her mentor brought a smile to the little Rabbit Pokémon.

"Rhrrgh."

"Bun-neary!" Jollie cheered. Adelina and Huey approached Alexa, Keenan and the twins.

"That was certainly a very impressive battle," she said nicely. "Everyone fought so hard." She looked over at Alexa and Keenan. "Congratulations to your Buneary and Riolu on their victory."

"Thank you," Alexa said politely. Ryder kept his eye on the bronze-haired lady, but Jollie seemed to be attracted to the red heart tattoo on Adelina's arm.

"You two have such interesting Pokémon. I'd like to battle the pair of you someday; once the contest is over," Adelina smiled. Keenan didn't look too sure, but Adelina turned around and began to walk away before Alexa could say anything. "I'll see you at the Contest Hall this Sunday, Hailey; I still have much to prepare for."

"O-okay. I'll see you soon, Adelina!" Hailey called. Huey walked happily alongside his Trainer as she walked out of the forest.

Hailey, Colin, Harvey, Hayden, Lily and Troy all approached Alexa, Keenan and the twins. Peggy immediately ran towards her big sister and gave her a great big hug.

"Well done on the battle, guys," Colin said happily. "Mary and Paul did surprisingly well," he said kindly to Daphne and Daniel.

"Aw, thanks, Dad!" Daphne smiled cheerfully.

"Even so, they still have a long way to go," Daniel sighed.

"They're still young, Dan, give them time," Colin chuckled. "Mary and Paul will be on par with Roland and Rhonda soon enough."

"Just keep at it," Hailey smiled.

"And you keep at it, too, little lady," Hayden smiled as he stroked Jollie's cheek. "You'll evolve into Lopunny very soon."

"Buneary!"

"So, now that the battle's over...what are we going to do for the rest of the day?" Alexa asked. Ryder folded his arms in thought.

"There's the Charity Pokémon Tournament later this evening," Keenan said.

"That's not until about eight hours from now," Alexa laughed. Keenan laughed nervously as Iara leapt into his arms. Lily snuck a peek at Harvey's Xtransceiver for the time.

"There's still quite a lot of time before lunchtime," she said quietly. "Maybe we can stay here and decide our next course of action when it's closer to lunchtime?"

"Sounds good to me," Hayden nodded.

"Same; we can go to the Pokémon Centre for snacks and more drinks if we're peckish while we're here," Harvey added.

"I agree with that plan," Hailey smiled.

"Me, too," Colin added.

"What do you kids think?" Lily asked.

"I don't mind," Alexa shrugged.

"If we have something to do, I don't mine either," Keenan replied.

"Good thing we brought Peggy's ball with us," Daphne smiled.

"I brought my novel, so I know how to use up my time here," Daniel said plainly.

"C'mon, Peggy, let's get your ball!" Daphne said keenly.

"Okay!" Peggy smiled as she followed her sister over to where the beach ball rolled off to. Daniel walked away from the group as Troy approached Alexa.

"Nice going on the battle, girl."

"I shouldn't have hesitated, though," Alexa said quietly.

"Want to talk about it?" Troy asked. "Why you hesitated, I mean."

"I think we all know why I hesitated, but, yeah, I guess," Alexa said reluctantly as she and Phoenix followed Troy to a quieter part of the forest. Jollie leapt out of Alexa's arms and straight into Ryder's.

"Come on, Jollie, let's hang out with the other Pokémon," Ryder smiled.

"Buneary~!" Jollie snuggled into Ryder's fluffy chest as he walked over towards David and Hailey's Altaria.

The adults made their way over to the bench, careful not to kick any of the unused soda cans as they sat back on the bench and started their own private conversation.

Daniel sat in front of a large tree rather far away from the rest of the family and opened his book. He exhaled as he resumed reading "Night of the Clefairy Dance" in peace and solitude.

Iara ran around as Peggy, Keenan and Daphne played a game with Peggy's beach ball. Jollie occasionally leapt up into the air, trying to hit the ball with her head as the game progressed.

Phoenix sat behind Alexa and held her in a very gentle hug as she and Troy settled in a peaceful and relatively isolated area of the forest. Alexa sighed as she prepared to talk with her eldest cousin.

 _To be continued..._


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight – Converse**

"So," Troy began as he leaned against the large sturdy tree he sat in front of. "Do you want to tell me what's on your mind or do you want me to guess?" he asked, trying not to sound intrusive. Phoenix's gentle cuddle wasn't enough to settle Alexa's nerves; even though she agreed to speak of her hesitation during her tag battle and what caused it, Alexa was still fairly reluctant to do so.

"Sorry," Alexa apologised finally. "I-I guess it was my concussion," she guessed. "I think it affected my ability to concentrate." Troy looked at his cousin doubtfully and remembered how focused she was in spite of that one moment of hesitation. He shook his head.

"You're not that great at lying," he said carefully.

"Was it that obvious?" Alexa asked reluctantly.

"To me," Troy answered. "It's about that guy who crashed into you in Nimbasa, right?"

"Keith," Alexa sighed. She didn't feel ready to talk about him yet.

"Yeah, him. He's on your mind, isn't he?"

"Yeah," Alexa confessed. Putting aside all feelings of anger and frustration he continued to harbour for Keith, Troy sat up and looked at her with worry in his emerald eyes.

"How do you feel about him?" he asked softly. Alexa avoided eye contact with Troy as she tried to discover said feelings for the Ranger boy. She began to panic a little as she thought more and more about her real feelings.

"I-I don't know!" she panicked. "H-He and I have been through so much together a-and I grew to really admire him, but...at the same time, I-I don't know if I can trust him..!"

"Rhrrrgh..." Phoenix growled gently as he began to stroke her golden blonde hair delicately. Alexa steadied her breathing.

"S-Sorry...but it's...it's frustrating and confusing for me to think about how I really feel about him..!" she explained, beginning to feel panicky again. "I-I don't know what to think or feel..!"

"Don't worry about it for now," Troy said nicely. "Maybe wait until you've fully recovered from the two knocks on the head before you start thinking about it again."

"I was surprised I was able to concentrate at all," Alexa said quietly. "Well...save for that one moment, at least..."

"All in all, you still have the knack for Pokémon Training," Troy smiled. "I was impressed with Jollie's battling performance if I'm honest."

"I still wonder why I hesitated, though," Alexa sighed. "I know it's because I have a lot on my mind, but-"

"In my opinion? Seeing Mary and Paul's teamwork with Helping Hand and Spark reminded you of something involving Keith," Troy said cautiously. "Considering you yourself said that the two of you went through a lot together, it only makes sense."

"I-I suppose so," Alexa agreed warily. "He and I worked together on numerous missions...my last mission before my leave of absence was a joint mission with him as well...w-which was when..."

"It's okay; I don't need to know the full story," Troy said kindly. He sighed silently, as though he was disinclined to ask his next question. "But if he somehow manages to earn your trust back, would you want to give him another chance?"

"...I-I-I don't know..."

"Sorry; I shouldn't have asked," Troy said shamefully. "And after I said you should wait until the concussion blows over, too..."

"I-It's okay," Alexa said, giving him a feeble smile. "I'll need to talk things over with him anyway. But, yeah, like you said, I'll wait until after my appointment this Sunday to think about talking to him about it."

"But something's bothering me, though," Troy began. "How come you're not mad at him for hospitalising you?" Phoenix looked down at Alexa with intent as he and Troy awaited Alexa to finish considering her lack of anger about the truth behind her accident.

"I don't know," she said simply. "To be honest, the last thing I remember...it had something to do with Halo...that's it."

"Alexa, Halo flew off towards Lostlorn Forest that day," Troy explained. "I don't know what made him so eager to go there, but I guess Lukie was in on it, as he followed Halo without thinking. We followed them, but I tried to caution you about how little you know about Lostlorn Forest, but you told me you wouldn't need to know how to get through the forest. Keith was headed your way at the same time, but by the time I saw him and tried to warn you, you'd already crashed into him and vice versa. You were out cold for about half a minute and you were rather disorientated afterwards; you thought I was moving my hand when I gave you the fingers test." Alexa remained silent as she heard the full story behind her accident, and looked worried. "Halo was wrecked with guilt, believing the accident to be his fault."

"From the sounds of it, I wasn't looking where I was going," Alexa said quietly.

"You looked back at me, so...no, you weren't," Troy said nervously.

"Then it wasn't Halo's fault; it was mine," Alexa said sheepishly. "I'm not sure if Keith's thinking it was his fault, but I'd be willing to meet him half way."

"And say you were both to blame for the accident?" Troy asked.

"Yeah," Alexa nodded. Troy smiled.

"Sounds like a plan to me," he said cheerfully. "Anyway, I'd rather talk about a more uplifting subject; how much of that grand do you have left? Y'know, after you bought your Xtransceiver."

"Hey, Lily, have you thought about the spa thing yet?" Hailey asked rather keenly. Lily smiled at her sister-in-law nervously.

"I've actually forgotten about it," she answered.

"I understand; Alexa's accident happened that same day," Hailey said kindly. Lily looked over at Phoenix.

"I'd have to ask Alexa about going to the spa with us," she stated. Hailey's eyes lit up a little.

"Us? Does that mean you...?" Lily smiled back at Hailey.

"Personally, I'd be happy to take you up on your offer, Hailey," she said sweetly. Hailey's grin grew.

"I still don't think spas are Alexa's thing," Hayden said as he scratched his head. "The closest thing Alexa's had to a spa treatment was the hot spring in Lavaridge Town."

"It's about time she had a real one thing, O brother mine," Hailey said playfully.

"I'll ask Alexa when she and Troy have finished their conversation," Lily stated. "There's no sense in disrupting it unnecessarily." Hayden nodded in agreement.

"By the way, little sister," Harvey began teasingly. "What do you have planned for the Pokémon Contest this Saturday?"

"You're going to have to wait and see," Hailey retorted impishly. Harvey laughed.

"She's planning something big, I can tell you that much," Colin smiled.

"A big surprise in a little package," Hailey said cryptically.

"In that case, I'm really looking forward to the Contest," Harvey grinned. Colin glanced over at Phoenix.

"By the way, Hayden, how's Alexa doing?" he asked with interest.

"She doesn't seem to be getting worse, which is a good sign," Hayden answered.

"It's still early days yet, but we'll know for sure once she's been to her appointment," Lily added.

"Personally, I think she's doing rather well," Colin said. "Save for that one moment of hesitation, I think she did very well during the battle."

"Me too," Hailey agreed. Harvey lost his smile as he looked towards his younger brother; the look Harvey gave him gave Hayden cause for concern.

"Hayden...do you think Alexa would consider travelling again?" Harvey asked. Hayden was somewhat shocked to hear such a suggestion.

"You mean another Pokémon journey?" he asked quietly.

"Yes," Harvey said seriously. Hayden sighed deeply as he ran his fingers through his brunette hair.

"Honestly, I have absolutely no idea," he said quickly. "Her journey through Sinnoh didn't end so well for her, what with Cynthia hospitalising six of her Pokémon and all."

"Considering that, Harv, why did you even ask?" Hailey asked, looking as annoyed as she felt.

"Because if Alexa's lost her sense of self-worth, then I reckon another journey might help her get it back," Harvey replied.

"What about her work as a Pokémon Ranger?" Colin asked curiously.

"I can't imagine Professor Hastings wanting to give Alexa time off to go soul-searching," Hayden said in a quiet murmur.

"Hayden, Erma's Alexa's boss, not Professor Hastings," Lily whispered.

"Tell that to Professor Hastings," Hayden said with annoyance. "Alexa told me once that he's given her more assignments than Erma has."

"In any case, I'm sure he – and Erma – would be understanding and let Alexa travel once more if indeed she'd like to," Lily said optimistically. "But, ultimately," she continued, losing some of her brightness. "It's for Alexa to decide."

"I think she should at least consider it," Harvey stated. "Of course, she doesn't have to if she doesn't like the idea, but-"

"I get it," Hayden said abruptly. "I'll find the appropriate time to talk to her about it; she's got a lot going on at the moment and, no offence, your proposition would only add to her pressure if I share it with her at the wrong time."

"No offence taken," Harvey said nicely. "I didn't mean to sound so intrusive, it was just a thought."

"I appreciate it, thank you," Hayden smiled.

"Hang on...if Alexa does agree, where would she travel?" Hailey asked in bemusement.

"Again, I would imagine that's for Alexa to decide," Lily stated.

"True," Hailey laughed.

"Kyle fought really well during our battle," Daphne praised as she tossed the large blue and white beach ball towards Keenan. He managed to catch it with both hands, in spite of Jollie and Iara trying to hit it with their heads.

"Thanks! Mary battled well too," Keenan complimented as he tossed the ball towards Peggy. She caught it, but Jollie tripped over her own feet as she tried to pursue the ball.

"All of them looked like they were having fun!" Peggy smiled cheerfully as she tossed the ball back to her sister. Iara helped Jollie onto her feet, and the Buneary brushed the dirt off of her fur.

"Well, between Trainers, Pokémon battling is kind of a sport, so it's all and good fun!" Daphne said merrily as she tossed the ball back towards Peggy. Iara managed to hit the ball with her tail, causing it to bounce away from Daphne and Peggy, who both turned to pursue it.

"Until someone gets hurt," Keenan said quietly, lacking all enthusiasm. Daphne looked concerned, having heard Keenan's words, as she followed Peggy as she collected her beach ball. The two girls soon returned to the game, and Peggy tossed the ball to Keenan, who caught it before Jollie could hit it with her ears.

"I wonder how I'll do as a Trainer," Peggy pondered. Daphne grinned happily as she caught the beach ball; Iara and Jollie bumped into one another as they tried to headbutt it simultaneously.

"You'll be great!" she declared. "Besides, you'll have Piper with you!"

"Blu?" Piper looked confused as she continued to fly alongside Peggy.

"Yeah, I'm talking about you, girl!" Daphne winked. "Daniel and Annabelle are her parents, and you know how strong they are!"

"Daphne's right," Keenan agreed as he caught the beach ball Daphne threw towards him. "In a way, I think you already have a head start."

"Huh?" Peggy looked at Keenan in confusion.

"When Alex and I had our starter Pokémon, we were new to the idea of having our own Pokémon while Phoenix and Iara were new to the idea of having a Trainer; you and Piper will have had five years to get to know one another by the time you can apply for a Trainer card of your own!"

"He's right, Pegs," Daphne corroborated as she watched Peggy trying to catch the beach ball with her guard down. Iara and Jollie rubbed their heads before standing on their own feet. "You won't need to worry about building the bridge of trust with your starter Pokémon because you already have Piper!"

"But how would I make a Pokémon I get later to trust me?" Peggy asked with unease as she tossed the ball to Daphne.

"The same way you got Piper to trust you; make friends with them," Daphne replied as she decided to headbutt the ball towards Keenan, which nearly knocked her glasses off of her face in the process. "Let them get to know you and they'll open up to you in return. That's how Troy did it, wasn't it...?"

"I know that's how Alex and I did it," Keenan smiled as he punched the ball towards Peggy. Iara continued to try and hit the ball again, but Jollie started to slow down due to exhaustion.

"And if they can do it, there's no reason to say that you can't either!" Daphne smiled as Peggy caught the beach ball. "You just need to be positive!"

"Thanks, Daphne, thanks, Keenan," Peggy smiled gratefully. Keenan smiled and nodded, though he couldn't quite understand how the little eight year old managed to get his name right and not Alexa's. Peggy kicked the beach ball, which bounced its way over to Daphne. Iara playfully ran around the ball as it bounced, but Jollie began hopping slowly towards Iara. "But I really want to be like Mummy!"

"A Co-ordinator?" Daphne questioned as she picked the beach ball off of the ground. Peggy nodded.

"How come?" Keenan asked curiously.

"The Contests are really pretty to watch," Peggy said blissfully as Keenan caught – and almost dropped – the incoming beach ball. "And the Pokémon all look like they have fun, too!"

"You say that about battling, too, Pegs," Daphne commented as she easily caught the beach ball Keenan threw at her.

"I know; I like Contests more because they're so pretty," Peggy said sweetly. She and Keenna tried not to laugh as the beach ball slipped out of Daphne's grip and started bouncing away from her.

"D'oh..! C'mere, you..!" Daphne caught up with the ball and brought it back to the circle with her. "So you like the Contests more because they can turn power into beauty?"

"Hey, Peggy likes art," Keenan remarked. "I guess she's trying to say she considers Pokémon Contests to be their own art form."

"Yeah!" Peggy nodded merrily.

"Blu, Blu!" Piper chirped cheerfully.

"I knew that," Daphne said unconvincingly as she tossed the ball to her little sister. Peggy caught the ball with ease.

"And I wanna be a great Pokémon Co-ordinator just like Mummy!" Peggy declared as she tossed the ball back to Daphne, who managed to keep it in her grip.

"That's great, Pegs!" she grinned joyfully. "I know Piper's going to be a great Contest Pokémon, too!"

"Blu, Blu, Blu!" Piper tweeted excitedly. Jollie silently walked out of the circle, panting rather heavily, as the ball game continued without her. She suddenly spotted a pair of dark blue-grey paws in front of her and looked up; Ryder was looking down at her with a happy smile.

"Worn out?"

"Bun," Jollie nodded breathlessly. Ryder gently picked up the little Buneary and held her in his arms.

"Let's see how Alex's doing, shall we?"

"Bun!" Jollie grinned. Ryder walked a few paces before he caught Daniel through the corner of his eye; the younger twin was up against another large tree at the far end of the forest, eyes fixated on his literature. Jollie looked up at Ryder in confusion as the Lucario walked over to him. Daniel kept his eyes glued to his novel as Ryder began to speak.

"Thank you. For setting Alex's mind at ease about Cynthia, I mean," Ryder said appreciatively.

"Yeah, sure," Daniel muttered plainly. Ryder looked at Daniel with antagonism.

"You know, I'm really getting fed up of your anti-social attitude towards Alex and Keenan; you're their cousin – their family for crying out loud!" he snapped.

"What about Troy?" Daniel asked blandly.

"Not so much; whatever problem the two of you have is your business. But, since they haven't done anything to you, I'm concerned and frustrated about your attitude towards Alex and Keenan," Ryder explained. "If I'm honest, your attitude towards them isn't fair!" Daniel looked up at Ryder with slight irritation.

"If you must know, I find both Alexa and Keenan to be far too emotional for their own good," he explained.

"So you're stoic then?" Ryder questioned, almost jokingly.

"No," Daniel said clearly. Ryder shook his head.

"I don't believe you," he remarked. "When was the last time you cried because you were sad?" he asked hypothetically. "When was the last time you spent quality time with your sisters and felt happy?" he asked, looking at Daphne's ball game through the corner of his eye. "When was the last time you actually felt any sort of emotion for anything? Or anyone?"

"Why is emotion such a big deal?" Daniel asked in confusion. "They just get in the way of what needs to be done." Ryder was extremely offended, having heard a similar opinion before. His glare became more violent, and Jollie was stunned to see a very brief flicker of cyan aura waving across the Aura Pokémon's arm.

"I disagree," Ryder said finally; he sounded almost as if he held back a lot of anger. "They're an indication that you have a heart!" He took a deep breath to calm himself down and sighed contently. "Take a good look at Rhonda if you don't believe me. If emotions get in the way, how is she an Umbreon? Umbreon evolve from Eevee through friendship at night."

"Friendship isn't its own emotion, Ryder," Daniel sighed.

"Maybe not, but it does carry certain emotions, notably happiness," Ryder countered. "Honestly, a lot of Pokémon evolve through friendship; Eevee, Chingling, Budew...Buneary...Riolu..."

"Buneary..?" Jollie looked up at Ryder with concern. Ryder shook his head rapidly and looked down at Daniel again.

"My point is you shouldn't denounce emotions for being a hindrance if you don't bother to look at them with more depth," he concluded. "Maybe you should try and experience some emotions for yourself."

"Ryder, Pokémon Trainers can't afford to dwell on emotions," Daniel retorted. "All they do in battle is make you lose sight of the battle at hand, and, in the worst case scenario, cause you to lose. I refuse to waste my time in something that holds me back." Ryder felt even more offended, and began to bear his teeth in rage.

"That's a load of Bouffalant Poop and you know it," he growled deeply. Jollie became intimidated over Ryder's anger.

"That's your opinion. As for me? I don't see the need to get worked up over every little thing that's going on," Daniel said neutrally.

"Nobody's getting worked up over every little thing!" Ryder snarled. "Alex is dealing with some very personal issues right now, and she needs her family around her to make her feel better!"

"That's her problem; not mine," Daniel said, somewhat rudely.

"She's still your family!" Ryder was beginning to lose patience. "The least you could do is show some support for her and let her know you're on her side! Unless of course you're not..."

"I'm not going to involve myself in Alexa's mess of a love life," Daniel groaned. "Like I said, it's her problem, not mine."

"Yeah, because Keith, being an eighteen year old, TOTALLY loves fifteen year old stoic boys," Ryder said sardonically as he rolled his eyes.

"Shut up," Daniel said grumpily. "And I'm not stoic; I told you this."

"I don't believe you; I told you that," Ryder responded.

"It's true, though; I'm not emotionally deprived as you might think," Daniel said confidently.

"Prove it," Ryder said firmly. Daniel lifted his book up a little and drew his eyes to the open pages, ignoring Ryder's remark. The Lucario sighed and turned to leave. "Don't kid yourself." He was about to walk away when he suddenly spotted Hailey and Colin approaching Daphne, Keenan and Peggy. He cheered up a little and ran towards Alexa, who was already in a small conversation with Hayden and Lily. Daniel placed a piece of white paper in between the two open pages of his book before closing it. He then held the book in one hand as he stood up and approached his parents.

"What's going on?" Daniel asked. Hailey and Colin looked towards Daniel as he approached them.

"We're moving on," Colin answered.

"Where to?" Daniel asked. The adults suddenly looked relatively uneasy.

"Uh...we haven't thought about that," Hailey admitted nervously. Daniel rolled his eyes in frustration.

"Nimbasa's arguably the closest place," Troy suggested.

"I agree," Harvey nodded. "Route 16 and Route 15 are extremely short areas, and crossing Marvellous Bridge on foot only takes twenty minutes; we'd be in Nimbasa City before lunchtime!"

"Are you sure it's a good idea?" Daniel questioned. "Considering the fact we've already spent a day in Nimbasa-"

"It's only for lunch," Colin laughed. "Besides, we've had lunch at Undella Town before, and that's the only other option; we're fairly limited either way," he added sheepishly.

"We could always fly and teleport to somewhere," Daniel suggested seriously.

"As convenient as that would be, we thought it best to travel together as a family," Colin smiled. Daniel said nothing and observed the interactions between his family members closely, Ryder's words echoing in his mind.

"Are there any good places to eat in Nimbasa?" Daphne asked curiously. "I don't think we ever looked..."

"We didn't," Daniel said quietly.

"I would imagine they'd have a restaurant; it is a city, after all," Hailey laughed. "But we can take a look at the map the city before we enter anyway."

"Good call," Lily complimented.

"What do you guys think?" Troy asked Alexa, Keenan and Peggy.

"Sounds fun!" Peggy smiled gleefully.

"I'm game," Keenan nodded.

"What about you, Lexie?" Hayden asked. He was happy to see Alexa looking a little more upbeat than she was before she spoke with Troy.

"I'm going to agree with Peggy on this one," she beamed.

"So it's settled then!" Hailey declared. "Lunch in Nimbasa!"

"Cool your jets, Hailey, we haven't moved an inch yet," Harvey laughed.

"That doesn't mean I can't be excited to spend more time with my family, Harvey," Hailey said jokingly.

"I agree," Hayden added. Harvey suddenly looked over at Rena, David, Annabelle and Troy's Archeops, all of whom were engrossed in their own conversation.

"Rena!" Harvey called. "C'mere a sec, could you?" The Dragonite flew over to her master quite keenly and smiled at him nicely.

"Drrgh!"

"Can you do me a really big favour?" Harvey asked. "I need you to go back home and check the mail for me."

"Drrgh!" Rena nodded in compliance as she took flight.

"Thanks, Rena. We might still be on Marvellous Bridge when you get back. Oh, if it arrives, can you bring it with you please?"

"Drrgh," Rena complied again.

"Thanks, girl. Have a safe flight!"

"Drrgh!" Rena shot up into the sky and soon disappeared from view.

"What was that all about?" Daphne asked in utter confusion.

"I'm expecting a package; it's due to arrive either today or tomorrow," Harvey explained as he looked down from the sky, having watched his Dragonite flying out of sight. Troy, Colin and Hailey each took a Poké Ball from their pockets and recalled their respective Pokémon; all three of them were enveloped and absorbed into a red stream of light, which retracted back towards the Poké Balls.

"Right, shall we be off?" Lily asked openly.

"Right, let's get going then," Colin said happily. Alexa looked between her three Pokémon.

"Do you guys want to stay out for a while?" she asked courteously.

"Sure," Ryder smiled kindly.

"Buneary!" Jollie rejoiced gaily.

"Rhrrgh," Phoenix growled gently. Alexa nodded.

"Okay, that's fine with me. Phoenix, just be careful of the ocean underneath the bridge, okay?"

"Rhrrgh," Phoenix nodded as he flew away from the forest. Daniel stayed behind as the rest of the family followed Harvey out of White Forest. He took a Poké Ball from his pocket and opened it, releasing a string of white light that formed into his Umbreon. Rhonda looked up at her master with a gleeful smile on her face.

"Umbreon!" she said delightfully. Daniel looked at her for a little while before finally running towards the rest of his family. Rhonda looked both confused and perturbed as she followed Daniel towards Marvellous Bridge.

 _To be continued..._


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine – Solace & Seals**

The sun was gleaming by the time Alexa and her family set foot onto the incredible marvel that was the Marvellous Bridge. A small, yet cooling breeze blew across the entire area, providing adequate relief from the sun's heat. Ryder set Jollie down as the pair ran merrily ahead of the family, who, apart from Daniel, were all engaged in their own separate conversations as they walked. Rhonda looked up at Daniel worriedly from time to time as she walked alongside the contemplating boy.

"Alexa, I need to ask you something," Hailey said rather quickly as she smiled towards her niece. Alexa looked up from her Xtransceiver and turned towards Hailey with a gentle smile.

"What's that?" she asked curiously.

"The thing is," Hailey started, as her smile grew more cheeky. "I have an appointment at the day before the Contest. Since your mother's coming with me, I was wondering if you'd like to come as well." Alexa's smile faded as she raised an eyebrow.

"To the spa?" she asked quizzically.

"Couldn't you have waited until later, Hailey?" Hayden asked in a small sigh.

"I know, I know, but I kinda need to know sooner rather than later; I have to give the spa at least twenty four hours notice for appointment changes," Hailey explained somewhat shyly, smiling sheepishly. "And, after tomorrow, I won't be able to change the appointment."

"What would I gain from a spa treatment?" Alexa asked in bewilderment. "It's not like I can get rid of my throbbing headache with one."

"Oh, do you need something for that?" Hayden asked rather worriedly.

"Not at the moment, Dad, thanks," Alexa smiled kindly. "But you know what I mean."

"I just thought that, maybe, it'd help you relax a little more," Hailey elaborated. "Spas are relaxing as well as give you a nice complexion."

"I wouldn't know, I've only ever been in a hot spring," Alexa muttered quietly.

"Told you so," Hayden remarked towards Hailey.

"It's entirely up to you, sweetie-pie, I won't force you either way," Hailey said considerately. Alexa took a few moments to contemplate her decision. It was true Alexa hadn't received a proper spa treatment before, so she was curious about what it would feel like to have such treatment, but, at the same time, she still questioned whether or not she needed it. Considering her current problems, she came to a decision quicker than she had expected.

"I'd love to," Alexa smiled. Hailey beamed with delight, whilst Hayden looked on with mild shock about his daughter's reply.

"Really? Great! I'll let the spa know sometime after lunch." Hailey grinned and very quietly squealed with excitement. "It'll be so great!"

"Honestly, Hailey, you're like a little kid in a sweet shop," Hayden chuckled.

"Just because I have a sweet tooth, Hayden, it doesn't mean you can pull that analogy out of your hat," Hailey pouted playfully. Alexa found herself smiling a little more; she thought that maybe she was beginning to feel better after making her decision, especially now that she had a new experience to look forward to.

"So, an aura-using Riolu, huh? That's quite a special Pokémon you have there!" Troy complimented. "It certainly took Adelina by surprise!" he laughed. Keenan remained silent, thinking to himself.

"Keenan? Are you feeling all right, honey?" Lily asked apprehensively. Keenan looked up at his mother as Iara climbed up onto his shoulders from his arms.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Keenan replied. "I was just thinking."

"About what, Little Man?" Troy asked curiously.

"Adelina," Keenan replied as he looked away from Lily.

"Hm?" Troy was even more curious.

"What about her?" Lily asked with interest. Keenan was mildly hesitant in his answer.

"She just... I don't know, something about her doesn't feel right..."

"What makes you say that, kiddo?" Troy was quite perplexed. "Is she an imposter, do you think?"

"I don't think that," Keenan replied, trying not to snigger. "But... I just don't think she's as nice as she likes to make people think she is."

"She seemed very nice to me," Lily said in bafflement. "Why do think she's being insincere about it?"

"It's just a feeling I have," Keenan replied waveringly. "I...I don't know how to explain it properly." Keenan knew precisely why he felt suspicious, but chose to hide his true reason, just to be safe and to avoid a heated debate. Troy and Lily faced one another with mutual and momentary bemusement before looking at Keenan again.

"Are you absolutely sure that your suspicions aren't just your imagination?" Lily asked carefully.

"I'm sure," Keenan said confidently. "Alex feels the same way." Lily's eyes widened slightly.

"Oh?"

"It's why we were delayed at the Contest Hall; we were discussing how and what we felt about Adelina."

"Harvey? You feeling all right?" Colin asked tensely. Harvey looked towards his brother-in-law in confusion.

"Hm? Yeah, I'm fine. Why?"

"I just couldn't help notice you looked a little distracted just now," Colin replied. Daphne walked behind her father, laughing delightfully as she gave her little sister a piggyback ride. Piper flew around the two sister, cooing joyfully. "It probably isn't even any of my business, but-"

"No, it's fine," Harvey smiled weakly. "There aren't any secrets in this family. Then again, this little distraction of mine isn't exactly secret anyway."

"It's Naomi, isn't it?" Colin asked with dread. Harvey nodded.

"I briefly said that she called earlier today, right?"

"Yeah, you said it was why you were delayed," Colin nodded. "What did she want? Is there a problem with the alimony, is there?"

"None whatsoever. Actually...sort of," Harvey sighed. "She wants me to stop the payments."

"Stop the payments?" Colin asked in utter disbelief. "What for?!"

"Hell if I know," Harvey sighed, running his hand through his hair. Laddy moved to Harvey's right shoulder to avoid getting hit by his arm. "I told her to call back later, so I didn't give her a chance to give me the full details, but I guess this means I'll be in court."

"Again? Honestly, as if her throwing the divorce onto you wasn't bad enough," Colin said grumpily. Harvey looked hurt.

"Hm."

"You still love her, don't you?" Colin asked dubiously.

"Even if I did, Naomi certainly made her position very clear; she wanted the divorce more than anything."

"Harvey, did you even speak to her before this morning?" Colin questioned.

"Honestly? I haven't even seen her since she moved out," Harvey said truthfully. "Sure, I paid the alimony when it was due, but...she and I hadn't spoken between the time she moved out and this morning. Truth be told, I'm a little shaken up."

"You hid it from the rest of us really well, though," Colin smiled nicely. "In any case, I'm sure Naomi has a good reason for wanting you to stop the alimony payments."

"She'd better; I don't think the justice system would accept 'I already feel bad about divorcing my husband' as a valid reason," Harvey said unenthusiastically.

"Don't be so hard on yourself; nobody blames you for the divorce," Colin said reassuringly.

"I know. Thanks."

Phoenix flew high up in the air above the bridge. He smiled down as he saw the many interactions among the family members and Ryder continuing to play with Jollie. He flew down on occasion, flying underneath the bridge for the trill of soaring back into the sky.

Daphne looked behind her and suddenly noticed Daniel trailing behind the rest of the family, eyes fixated towards the ground. She stopped to let Peggy off of her back.

"Stay with Dad, okay?" she said quickly as she ran back towards her brother. Peggy and Piper were confused, but they did as they were told and ran over to Colin, who looked down at Peggy and happily ruffled her hair a little.

"Umbreon..?"

"Daniel!" Daphne called. Daniel stopped and looked ahead as his twin sister approached him. "Hey, Slowpoke, what's keeping you?"

"I'd rather not disclose that information," Daniel said under his breath.

"Aw, come on, you're not usually this slow and distracted," Daphne said, beginning to worry. "Something's bothering you and I want in on it." Daniel sighed.

"If you must know, Ryder spoke to me," he said begrudgingly. "He thinks I'm stoic. I was just thinking about whether or not it's true." Daphne folded her arms.

"It's not that you're stoic, Daniel; it's just that you've been having a hard time showing your feelings for four years now," Daphne said gently. Daniel clenched his fist, his knuckle cracking very quietly. "Sorry...I-I didn't mean-"

"I don't blame you. How could I? You weren't involved in any way," Daniel said angrily.

"But...even so, I didn't mean to reference it," Daphne said apologetically.

"It doesn't matter; it's irrelevant to what's on my mind. Maybe. Anyway, Ryder doesn't think emotions get in the way of anything; do you think that's true?"

"I think emotions are a wonderful thing to have," Daphne answered quickly. "Sure, there are emotions that I could do without, but we can at least try to keep them under control."

"It's just...I've wondered if Pokémon Trainers are better off without worrying about their feelings," Daniel said quietly.

"I wouldn't word it quite like that, though; a Trainer should keep their feelings under wraps to the best of their abilities during battle in order to maintain their concentration and focus. A Pokémon Trainer without emotions is almost like peanut butter without the peanuts; it's just butter, which is really boring! I don't get why they have peanut allergy notices on peanut butter anyway, it's like saying milk contains milk; we already know it's in there, it's in the freaking name..!"

"So somebody like Grandpa Ian then...?" Daniel asked, ignoring Daphne's little digression.

"Iron grip, dude; Grandpa Ian's grip on his emotions is freaking iron," Daphne winked. "He's actually a very caring guy!"

"Huh."

"Look, don't let what happened four years ago stop you from giving emotions another chance," Daphne said seriously, planting a comforting hand on her brother's shoulder. "I'm not expecting you to revert to who you used to be overnight, but at least try to prove Ryder wrong; you're not stoic, Daniel." Daniel smiled as he rested his hand on top of Daphne's.

"I'll consider it, but Alexa and Keenan are still far too emotional for my tastes."

"I know; even before 'it' happened, getting 'too' emotional was never your thing," Daphne smiled kindly.

"Thanks, Daph; I appreciate it," Daniel said gratefully. Rhonda smiled happily as she saw Daniel cheering up. She rubbed her head against his leg affectionately, causing Daniel to look down at her. She soon looked up at him with a sunny grin.

"Umbreon!" Daniel smiled at her.

"Hey!" Daniel and Daphne looked ahead of them and spotted Colin running over to them. Daphne almost laughed when Colin almost tripped over his own feet before finally approaching them. "What're you two dawdling around for? The others are almost off of the bridge!"

"Let's go, Daniel!" Daphne said keenly. Daniel nodded and followed his sister and father as they ran along the bridge towards the rest of the family, Rhonda chasing after them merrily.

Colin and the twins eventually caught up with the rest of the family, who had stopped near the other end of the bridge to let Alexa fiddle with her Xtransceiver. Troy was also playing about with his Xtransceiver by the time Colin and the twins finally returned to the group. Hailey smiled at Daniel.

"What kept you?"

"Sorry, I had something on my mind," Daniel apologised. "It's okay now, I'm not worried about it anymore."

"That's good to hear, baby," Hailey smiled lovingly. To Colin's confusion, Daniel walked over to Alexa.

"Alexa?"

"Hm?" Alexa looked towards him. "What's up?"

"I'm sorry I was rude to you," Daniel said sincerely. The sudden apology left everyone, including Rhonda, bewildered.

"Okay...?" Alexa seemed to be pretty confused herself.

"I know you have your own issues to deal with, and my rudeness probably hasn't helped anything, and I'm sorry."

"It's okay," Alexa smiled. "I'd be sour about me too if I were in your shoes." Daniel laughed a little.

"I don't think I'd put it like that."

"Yeah, well, I did, so there," Alexa said teasingly. "Oh, hey! Seeing as I've added more numbers to my Xtransceiver, I was wondering if you'd like us to register one another as well."

"Is that why everybody stopped?" Daniel asked.

"Not originally, but I made it the new excuse," Alexa replied rather sheepishly. "I needed more numbers anyway, Daphne's can't be the only one I have forever." Daniel was rather surprised to hear Alexa wanting to register his Xtransceiver contact number in her Xtransceiver, but he eventually gave his blonde cousin a tiny smile.

"All right," he agreed. Colin crouched to Daphne's level.

"Okay, where's the real Daniel and what did you do with him?" he asked jokingly. Daphne was far from amused.

"Dad, be serious; you know where the real Daniel is," she whispered with frustration.

"But what did you say to him?" Colin asked seriously.

"He was concerned about whether or not he's emotionally deprived, and I told him the truth," Daphne explained in a low murmur. "I was just trying to help."

"Seems to be working, though," Colin smiled. "Good going, angel." Daphne smiled as Colin stood up properly, by which time Alexa and Daniel had successfully registered each other on their Xtransceivers.

"That's that then," Daniel commented. "All that's left is for Peggy to get a Xtransceiver so you can register her as well."

"That depends," Alexa smiled as she lowered her arm.

"On..?"

"If she wants one or not," Alexa winked.

"Anyway, since we're all together, shall we continue onwards?" Colin suggested, looking at his yellow and slate grey Xtransceiver. "It's almost lunchtime."

"Won't be long now," Harvey smiled. "Anybody starving to death?" he asked jokingly.

"Not really," Daniel said seriously. "But if we stay here any longer, I might get seasick."

"Good point," Harvey nodded as he and the rest of the family proceeded towards the bridge's exit. Ryder and Jollie finally stopped playing around and joined the family, while Phoenix flew onto the bridge and walked close to Alexa, who was happy to see all three of her Pokémon looking bright and cheerful. Ryder looked at Daniel spontaneously, noticed the boy's very subtle attitude change and smiled to himself.

The road just before Nimbasa City was wide, but short. The Lostlorn Forest was on the family's right hand side, as many large and sturdy trees grew inside the fenced off area. Despite the fence, and the forest's reputation, there was a large wooden gate built into the fence. There was nobody else on the road, which made the final stretch towards Nimbasa City a very peaceful one. Jollie yawned rather loudly, which caught Alexa's attention very quickly.

"Aww, is somebody sleepy?" she asked playfully. "I think you two played for too long, Ryder."

"Heh, yeah," Ryder laughed. "And she battled today as well, so us playing on top of that was too much for her."

"Neary...!" Jollie yawned again.

"I think you've had enough excitement for one day, Jollie," Alexa said as she held out the black, red and yellow Poké Ball. "Back you go." Jollie was then quickly absorbed into the Poké Ball through the emitted string of red energy.

"DRRGH!"

"Isn't that Rena?" Lily asked as she and the rest of the family looked up into the sky. Harvey smiled as the small silhouette grew in size as it approached them.

"And she's not empty handed either," he smiled as a smiling Dragonite flew towards her trainer, carrying a large bag around her shoulder. "It arrived then?"

"Drrgh!" Rena nodded as she pulled out a large cardboard box from inside the bag. She placed it on the ground and used one claw to break the brown parcel tape as Harvey knelt in front of it, smiling as he opened the box.

"You beauty! Thanks for picking it up, Rena," he said gratefully.

"Drrgh~!" Rena smiled satisfyingly. Hayden and Hailey looked inside Harvey's parcel; there were various blue pouches that were tied up tightly with red string and many Poké Balls that looked darker and slightly bluer than they normally were.

"How many Ball Capsules?" Hailey laughed. Rena reclaimed the box and held it in her arms as Harvey stood up properly, holding one of the strange-looking Poké Balls in his hand.

"They're not all for me, Hailey, I bought them for everyone," he explained.

"Honestly?" Hayden asked. "You didn't need to do that."

"No, I didn't; I felt like it," Harvey smiled. He expanded the Poké Ball in his hand and carefully opened the Ball Capsule, taking the Poké Ball out of it. "Don't worry about the Poké Balls; they're empty, you can do whatever you like with them."

"How many are in there, Uncle Harvey?" Daphne asked as she examined what looked like countless Poké Balls and pouches.

"There are more Seal Pouches than there are Ball Capsules, but I bought enough for everybody," Harvey explained. "Not sure how many spares there'll be."

"Maybe give the spares to Dad?" Hailey suggested.

"Dad already has a batch; he just never uses them," Harvey laughed. He looked towards Peggy and held out the translucent blue capsule to her. "Here, this one's for you. For Piper's Poké Ball." Peggy looked up at her mother in confusion.

"It's okay, Peggy, you can have it," Hailey smiled kindly. Peggy gently took the capsule from her uncle's hand.

"Thank you, Uncle Harvey," she said politely. Piper stared at the weird blue object from Peggy's shoulder.

"You're welcome," Harvey smiled.

"How many did you buy anyway, Dad?" Troy asked curiously.

"The idea was that the rest of us have six capsules and three pouches between us," Harvey said as he began to take his share of the merchandise from the parcel. "Don't worry about the pouches too much, they each contain ten seals. If you end up getting seals you don't like, you can trade."

"Back up a minute...what do they even do?" Ryder asked in complete confusion.

"They basically affect how you appear out of your Poké Ball," Alexa explained as she began to take her half dozen capsules. Ryder took one of the pouches from the box and looked inside it; his eyes and paw shone cyan as he levitated a few of the seals out of the pouch; one looked like a yellow lightning bolt, the second looked like a large pink petal and the last one looked like a trio of blue bubbles.

"I don't get it," he said simply as he placed the seals back into the pouch just in time for Alexa to claim it as her third pouch.

"I'll demonstrate it to you with Shandra's Poké Ball later on, okay?"

"Okay," Ryder nodded. "But what are they for anyway?"

"It's common for Pokémon Coordinators to use them to get extra points in Contests," Hailey replied, claiming her share of the merchandise. "And it does work with the right seals. I already have some Ball Capsules, but I definitely need some new seals at any rate; I keep losing them."

"Of course, you don't have to use the Ball Capsules for Pokémon Contests," Colin continued as he claimed his share. "You can use them whenever and wherever you want. But you'll need to remove them before transferring a Pokémon somewhere or trading them."

"Sounds interesting. Kinda looking forward to the demonstration now, Alex," Ryder smiled. Alexa placed her newly claimed seals and Ball Capsules – with the six free Poké Balls – in her backpack.

"I'm looking forward to trying them out, actually; I've never tried them out before," she said rather excitedly.

"Didn't you talk to the guy selling seals in Sunyshore Market?" Troy asked as he quickly picked out his six Ball Capsules.

"I didn't have any Ball Capsules at the time," Alexa replied. "That and I didn't know what they even were; I thought they were stickers, which I knew I didn't need."

"Stickers don't last for long anyway," Hayden agreed as he walked away from the box with his six Ball Capsules and three seal pouches.

Soon, everybody, except Peggy, had six Ball Capsules and three seal pouches. Lily, however, was about to walk away with three seal pouches and five Ball Capsules when Harvey gently stopped her.

"Hold on, why did you only take five capsules?" he asked in puzzlement.

"Because I only have five Pokémon," Lily replied honestly.

"Still?"

"What's wrong with having only five Pokémon?" Lily asked defensively.

"Nothing," Harvey shrugged. "But I think it's high time to consider Pokémon number six, so go ahead and take another capsule."

"I don't need six Pokémon," Lily argued.

"When was the last time you caught a Pokémon?" Harvey questioned.

"Five years ago; I caught Rick in National Park," Lily replied.

"Yeah, the five years thing kind of speaks for itself," Harvey smirked.

"I'm fine with five Pokémon, Harvey," Lily sighed.

"If you say so. But take one more capsule; if only for the heck of it," Harvey insisted nicely. Lily appeared hesitant, but, out of kindness, took the last remaining Ball Capsule from the cardboard box. "Oh, hey, it's empty! It's all yours, Rena."

"Drrgh!" Rena dropped the box onto the ground and suddenly jumped on top of it, flattening it instantly. She picked up the flattened cardboard box and disposed of it in the nearby waste bin.

"I thought she was going to destroy it," Ryder said randomly.

"In a way, she kind of did," Alexa chuckled. Rena walked back over to Harvey, smiling contently.

"Thanks, girl." Harvey took out a Poké Ball from his pocket. "Get some rest, you've earned it."

"Drrgh," Rena grinned as the Poké Ball's red beam absorbed her and pulled her into it. Harvey returned the Poké Ball into his pocket and looked towards Nimbasa City.

"Right. Lunch awaits."

 _To be continued..._


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten – Quality Time**

Harvey led the rest of the family into a large gate, situated just before Nimbasa City. Peggy and Piper looked up at the electronic bulletin board placed above a monitor displaying various photographs of Nimbasa's main attractions, watching the date, current weather and other miscellaneous news items scrolling by in bright yellow text. Next to the monitor was a large map of the city, which was so clear that anybody could read it; the main roads were clearly marked in grey and various notable buildings and attractions had their own symbol, all in different shapes and colours. Harvey was the first to approach the map, followed by Hayden and Colin.

"Is this the newest edition?" Hayden asked curiously.

"Yep," Harvey nodded. "They changed it after Elesa relocated her gym."

"Less said about that, the better," Colin said in a huff.

"Let it go, man," Harvey chuckled. He studied the map more closely. "Let's see..."

"Hey, Lex! Since we're waiting for the Dads to finish map reading, how about showing off what the Poké Ball seals can do?" Troy suggested.

"Are you sure? I mean, I'd be sending one of my Pokémon out for no reason," Alexa said hesitantly.

"Make up an excuse or something," Troy shrugged.

"Are you really that desperate to see the demonstration?" Alexa asked, raising an eyebrow.

"From someone who hasn't even touched a Ball Capsule before, yeah; it'll be interesting to see what you'd do with 'em," Troy smiled.

"You don't have to do it now, Alexa," Lily said kindly. "That being said, do you have Shandra with you, perchance?"

"Yeah, why?" Alexa asked.

"I was thinking that if there's something you've forgotten from home, Shandra can pick it up for you," Lily suggested.

"Yeah, like, you left your handheld...thingie at home!" Ryder smiled, tail starting to wag excitedly. "That thing that you gave Keith that one time! What's it called again..?"

"My phone," Alexa sighed. "And I left it behind deliberately."

"What about your computer book thingie?" Ryder questioned.

"My laptop? I suppose so; Keith doesn't know my email address anyway," Alexa said considerately. "Troy, can you look for-"

"On it," Troy said abruptly, opening Alexa's backpack and digging out one Ball Capsule and seal pouch. He closed the backpack and handed the items over to Alexa, who held a Poké Ball in one hand.

"What are you going to use your laptop for, Alex?" Keenan asked curiously as he watched Alexa placing the Poké Ball inside the Ball Capsule while trying not to drop the seal pouch at the same time.

"I don't know yet," Alexa said quickly as she closed the Ball Capsule over the Poké Ball. Momentarily pocketing the Poké Ball, she looked through the seal pouch.

"Then why do you want Shandra to get it?" Keenan asked sheepishly.

"Mainly so Shandra isn't sent out for no reason," Alexa stated, pulling two identical seals, both depicting a small pink heart.

"You're not on any forums or websites, are you?" Daphne asked with interest.

"Nope," Alexa replied as she placed the two seals onto the Ball Capsule. "I don't have any online accounts."

"How come?" Daphne asked in confusion.

"Simply put, I don't want any," Alexa replied, laughing a little. "Okay, I think that's good enough for now. Does it matter how many seals you have on them?"

"The more you have, the larger the display," Hailey explained. "You can put different seals on one capsule as well, but most people tend to go same-y in that regard."

"Good to know," Alexa smiled. "Okay, Shandra, show me what these seals can do!"

Hayden, Harvey and Colin turned around just in time for Shandra's Poké Ball to pop open; the straight-haired Gardevior emerged from her Poké Ball with numerous small pink hearts swirling around her. Peggy and Piper were immediately infatuated with the enhanced entrance, and even Daniel was mildly impressed.

"Hm! Simple, yet effective. Nice one, Alexa."

"I didn't want to go overboard," Alexa said shyly.

"Gardevoir?" Shandra asked; her voice was soft and was slightly high in pitch. Alexa looked towards her Pokémon.

"Shandra, do you know what my laptop is?" she asked. It took Shandra a few moments to think, but she eventually nodded. "Can you go home and pick it up for me please? It's on my desk in my bedroom, it's very easy to spot."

"Gardevoir!" Shandra smiled and nodded courteously before disappearing in a brief flash of yellow light. Hayden, Harvey and Colin approached Alexa.

"Nothing to it, eh, chick?" Harvey grinned. Alexa looked at Shandra's Poké Ball – or, rather, the Ball Capsule enveloping the Poké Ball – and smiled.

"Maybe I should put all of my other Poké Balls in one of these," she mused. Harvey ruffled Alexa's hair and laughed.

"That's why you have six of them, chick!" Alexa tidied her hair with one hand, though she didn't seem to appear bothered about her uncle's rather wild ruffling.

"Did you find the restaurant?" Hailey asked.

"Yeah, it's next to the Pokémon Centre," Harvey replied.

"Really? But I thought something else used to be next door to the Pokémon Centre...?" she queried.

"There was, hun; it used to be the Battle Institute," Colin explained. "It closed down because nobody was using the facilities."

"So they turned it into a restaurant..?" Lily questioned quizzically.

"Yeah, there was apparently plenty of space for one," Colin continued. "Or so I've heard, at least..."

"You mean they didn't commission you to build it?" Harvey asked jokingly.

"No, the restaurant owners had their own contractors ready for the renovation," Colin replied calmly. "Or, like I said, so I've heard."

"In either case, shall we get going?" Hayden asked openly.

"Well, if that restaurant sounds new, I'm curious about what it has to offer," Troy nodded.

"Same here," Harvey agreed. "Let's go." However, before the family could move, Shandra suddenly appeared behind Alexa, holding what looked like a thin ruby red book in her arms.

"Gardevoir." Alexa turned around and faced Shandra.

"Hi, Shandra!" She noticed the item Shandra gently held against her chest. "Oh, thanks, Shandra!" Shandra happily handed the item over to Alexa. "Did you find it okay?"

"Gardevoir," Shandra nodded.

"That's good. Thanks, Shandra, I appreciate it," Alexa smiled. She took Shandra's Poké Ball with one hand and held it out to her. "You can have a rest now."

"Gardevoir," Shandra bowed courteously as a red beam of harmless energy absorbed her into the Poké Ball. As she returned the Poké Ball to her pocket, Jollie yawned loudly.

"Um, I think we should get back to our Poké Balls as well, Alex," Ryder said sheepishly.

"I'm not surprised, you practically ran that bunny along the entire bridge!" Harvey laughed. Troy kindly took Alexa's laptop off of her hands as she picked out Ryder's Poké Ball and Jollie's Poké Ball in each hand.

"Well, that just means Jollie's going to sleep well tonight," Alexa stated. "And, Ryder, you need to recharge your batteries as well."

"I don't use batteries!" Ryder laughed. "Whatever those are..." he muttered as the red energy beam absorbed him and Jollie into their respective Poké Balls. Harvey returned Laddy to his Poké Ball, Daniel returned Rhonda to her Poké Ball and Keenan returned Iara to her Poké Ball. Alexa took Phoenix's Poké Ball and looked up at him.

"Do you need to rest, Phoenix?" she asked. The Charizard gently flapped his wings and eventually shook his head.

"Rhrrrgh," he growled softly.

"Okay," Alexa nodded. "I'll see you later then." Phoenix smiled and nodded at her as the energy beam absorbed him into his Poké Ball. Peggy returned Piper to her Poké Ball Alexa pocketed Phoenix's Poké Ball as the family were finally beginning to move out of the gate. But Troy hadn't moved.

"Where do you want this?" he asked.

"Just in my backpack, no biggie," Alexa replied. She stood perfectly still while Troy opened her backpack and carefully slipped the laptop inside before closing it up again. He couldn't help but notice the keyring hanging from the zip; it was a holographic Milotic keyring.

"Huh; that's a nice keyring you have," Troy smiled as he admired the item. Alexa's smile weakened.

"Thanks," she said half-heartedly. "Shall we go?" Troy noticed her rapid subject change and was slightly concerned.

"Yeah," he nodded as he followed his cousin out of the gate.

Nimbasa City was as lively as ever. The fairground was by far the most populated area in the entire city, but other people were walking around the city, some in groups of about four or five, going into various different venues. Troy and Alexa were approaching the Music Hall and could see the rest of their family heading in the direction of the Pokémon Centre.

"Was it something I said?" Troy asked.

"Regarding...?"

"How quickly you wanted us to leave the gate," Troy explained. "All I did was compliment your-"

"Keith gave it to me," Alexa said abruptly.

"Did he?"

"Yeah, he...it was a souvenir from Fiore. We were only friends back then, though."

"But considering the bad blood between you two, what made you keep it? Or even put it on your backpack in the first place?" Troy asked in confusion.

"For the record, it's been on my backpack for a while now," Alexa stated. "I couldn't be bothered to take it off after Keith and I...last fought."

"Ah, I see. Don't worry about it, Lex, you'll work things out eventually," Troy said optimistically. Alexa nodded, but she stopped when she was on the bridge towards the Pokémon Centre. Troy stopped and looked at her as she surveyed the entire area.

"Why does this place stand out to me?" Alexa asked.

"It's where you bumped into Starmie Head," Troy explained. "You were KO'd for a little while and had to go to hospital for it; you failed the fingers test."

"The what?" Alexa asked, rubbing her head. Troy shook his head.

"Never mind. Is anything coming back to you at all?" he asked. Alexa looked around the whole area once more and tried to concentrate. After a few moments of silence, she sighed and looked at her cousin with a look of disappointment on her face.

"No... I can't remember anything." Troy approached her and placed a hand on her shoulder, smiling kindly.

"It's okay, don't worry about it. He's gone, and that's all that matters." Alexa took little comfort in Troy's words, but smiled regardless.

"Thanks, Troy."

"Come on, let's meet the others now; I don't want 'em to think I had to take you to the hospital again," he teased. Alexa sighed silently as she followed Troy across the bridge and towards the Pokémon Centre.

When they arrived at the apparently new restaurant, they were mildly taken aback at the overall casual atmosphere; there were several identical squared tables with matching mahogany chairs surrounding them, all of which were on a dark oak laminate flooring. The walls were all painted in the same light and gentle shade of cream and had several calming paintings of stunning scenery hanging in various areas of the restaurant. There was a bar at the far end of the floor, near what looked like a stage, where a middle-aged guitarist was sitting on a chair, quietly tuning his country guitar. Alongside the normal tables and chairs were various seating booths, which consisted of identical circular cream-coloured and cushioned leather sofas in front of a rather large rectangular table, not dissimilar to the standard tables in the restaurant. There were many waiters and waitresses walking around in the same black and white uniforms, some with a full tray of various meals, some empty-handed and some with a tray of drinks. Alexa and Troy looked around the restaurant and spotted Daphne waving at them; they smiled as they approached the distant seating booth and sat down, Troy courteously letting Alexa sit down first.

"Hey, what kept you both?" Harvey asked as Alexa placed her backpack down by her feet. Troy picked up one of the fairly large menus and began examining it.

"Nothing much, we were just talking," Alexa said honestly. "What'd we miss?"

"I was thinking of replacing my Poké Gear," Keenan explained. The revelation took Alexa by slight surprise.

"Oh, really? But that cover you ordered for it is barely three months old."

"I know, but I've been thinking about it since I've seen yours," Keenan said bashfully. "It just caught my interest."

"Can't say I blame you," Daniel said. "They're certainly more convenient in my opinion, not to mention there's less hassle with a Xtransceiver than with a Poké Gear." Daphne nodded in agreement throughout Daniel's explanation.

"And they're so easy to use!" she added. "But, then again, you've already heard my say on it in Undella."

"Yeah," Keenan chuckled nervously. "But if I get one, what am I supposed to do with my Poké Gear?"

"For starters, I suggest writing down any contacts you might want to keep before erasing all of them," Hayden advised. Keenan listened intently to his father. "After that, I can help you sell the Poké Gear."

"Sell it? Who'd want a Poké Gear with the Xtransceiver already outshining it?" Daphne asked.

"Put it this way, Daphne; playing cards aren't the only things collectors will go berserk over," Daniel said plainly.

"Ber-what?" Peggy asked in confusion.

"What I mean is there are people who would pay almost anything to get their hands on something," Daniel explained.

"But not everyone's so reliable," Hayden added. "I think we may end up selling it to a properly licensed trader."

"Sounds good," Keenan smiled.

"With any luck, you should be able to use that money to buy the Xtransceiver," Alexa added cheerfully.

"Like you did with the coin you found?" Keenan asked curiously.

"I used ten percent of that money, yes," Alexa nodded. "Not sure what to use the rest of it on..."

"Anything you want, sweetheart, it's your money," Lily smiled kindly.

"Yeah, I'll cross that bridge when we get to it," Alexa nodded. "But, hey, if you don't make enough money from the Poké Gear, I'll help you pay for it."

"Are you sure?" Keenan asked.

"Yeah, of course," Alexa grinned. "But it's up to you, though, I don't mind either way."

"Thanks, Alex," Keenan said gratefully. He looked towards Hayden, still with his sunny smile. "Thanks, Dad." Hayden smiled and nodded.

Two waitresses, one with black hair tied in a single ponytail and the other with short brown hair, approached the table, each with a tray of different drink glasses and bottled drinks. The two waitresses distributed the drinks carefully and matched the drink with the person who requested it very efficiently, despite Troy and Alexa's absence during the ordering. The waitresses soon left with a courteous smile on their faces after all of the drinks were distributed. After taking a sip from her cola, ignoring the lemon slice in the glass, Alexa peeked at the menu Troy continued to read.

"So, Hailey," Harvey began after pouring some red wine in his glass. "The Contest is in two days, huh? You sure you're ready for it?"

"My little star is as ready as he'll ever be," Hailey smiled gleefully. "But I'll keep up the rehearsals anyway; practise makes perfect, and the more practise Eric gets, the better."

"Try not to push him, though, Hailey," Hayden cautioned.

"I know how to treat my Pokémon, Hayden," Hailey said, pouting playfully.

"No, I mean you don't want him to push himself so far he ends up breaking his arm again," Hayden explained.

"I know. But this routine is going to be eye candy for everyone who watches it, you mark my words," Hailey winked.

"What's eye candy?" Peggy asked.

"She means Eric's appeal is going to be very pretty to look at," Daphne answered. "Like, very, very, very pretty! That's what eye candy means."

"Sounds a bit strange to me, though," Alexa said, keeping her eyes glued to the menu.

"Do you not like that term then?" Colin asked, lowering his glass of sparkling water.

"I just think it's a weird thing to say, that's all," Alexa replied. Hailey shrugged.

"The point is Eric's appeal is going to leave the audience in awe; that's all that needs to be said," she said somewhat boastfully as she drank from her glass of white wine. "Of course, it does mean tomorrow's going to be rather busy...what with the spa appointment and everything."

"That reminds me, Hailey, when should Alexa and I meet you in Nacrene City?" Lily asked. Hailey placed the wine glass on the table and lifted her left arm up, revealing her silver and pink Xtransceiver. As she continuously pressed the touchscreen with her finger, Keenan noticed that the grey strap had a pink ribbon design on it.

"Well, the appointment's at 10:30, but I don't know how you're going to get to Nacrene, so-"

"Alexa and I can be there by then," Lily smiled. "Do you agree, Alexa?" Alexa looked at her mother over the menu.

"Yeah, no problem," she nodded. She suddenly smirked. "I was listening."

"Nobody's saying you weren't," Lily laughed. "With Cheryl – or Shandra, for that matter – we can be there at 10:30 on the dot if that works out."

"Sounds good enough for me," Hailey smiled, lowering her arm.

"Aunt Hailey, when's Eric going to have his final rehearsal anyway?" Alexa asked as she continued to look through the main course meals on the menu.

"Tomorrow evening or perhaps even Saturday morning before the Contest," Hailey replied. "Don't worry, the spa won't clash with his rehearsals."

"I wasn't worried; I was just curious," Alexa said reassuringly.

"Hey, Lex, this one sounds nice," Troy beamed. Alexa curiously looked at whatever it was Troy was pointing at.

Keith handed Robbie and Reese a bowl of rather bland looking Pokémon food. Reese took one of the brown pellets in his paw and sniffed it before he placed it in his mouth. Reese smiled with delight as he proceeded to nibble on another pellet. Robbie lapped one pellet into his mouth with his tongue and, before he knew it, he was eating from the entire bowl. Keith smiled briefly as his Sawsbuck and Buizel ate the standard Pokémon food before approaching the egg case resting on the chest of drawers. He removed the gold-plated lid from the case and used both hands to carefully scoop the egg out of the case entirely. He felt nervous; this was literally the first time he ever held a Pokémon egg in his entire life. Reese looked up as Keith sat on the bed, with the egg carefully resting on his lap. He pulled a soft towel from over his shoulder and began gently rubbing the egg with it. Robbie only looked up at Keith when he heard a light sigh and saw Keith lowering his arm and the towel. Reese leapt across the cabin, onto Keith's bed and approached him. Keith looked down at the worried Buizel, looking very slightly anxious.

"I'm all right. I'm just...a little nervous about this," he confessed. Reese looked between Keith and the egg in confusion. "About meeting Alexa, I mean."

"Bui?" Reese tilted his head.

"I don't have a way to communicate with her right now, so...I don't even know if she'll be back in Johto by the time we get there," Keith sighed as he leaned back. "Guess I'll have to take the chance...it's too late to turn back now anyway." Reese ran over to him and gave him the biggest cuddle he possibly could. Keith smiled warmly as he petted the little Buizel, which brought a smile to Robbie's face. "Thanks, buddy." Keith lifted his head up and looked at the round light in the ceiling. "I really want to sort things out with her. Or...try to, at least. I was...thoughtless... I just hope she'll be well enough by the time we see her."

"Saws," Robbie nodded. Keith took note of Robbie's rather confident smile, causing his own smile to grow.

"Yeah; she's survived worse. She'll get back on her feet."

"Bui!" Reese nodded in agreement. As he continued to pet the hugging Sea Weasel Pokémon, Keith suddenly felt some sort of movement from the egg, which took him by surprise. Sure enough, he, Robbie and Reese saw the egg moving very slightly.

Alexa and Troy were the last to leave the Nimbasa restaurant and followed the rest of the family near the gate leading to Join Avenue.

"That was a gorgeous meal! Thanks, everyone!" Hailey said joyfully.

"Hayden, are you sure you were comfortable paying for some of it, though?" Colin asked.

"Positive," Hayden nodded. "Don't worry about it, it's not a big deal."

"Sorry, it's just...I dunno, you're the one on holiday here; it felt weird, in a way," Colin said nervously.

"Think nothing of it, honestly," Hayden smiled.

"Well," Harvey said suddenly, almost slamming his hand on his younger brother's shoulder. "I dunno about the rest of you, but I'm gonna head back home." Hayden rubbed his shoulder as soon as Harvey removed his hand.

"Yeah, today's been really enjoyable, but there's only so much excitement we can take for one day," Troy agreed.

"What are you going to do now?" Lily asked Hailey and Colin.

"Well, Eric kind of needs as much rehearsal time as he can get, so I'll be doing that later this afternoon," Hailey mused.

"I'll probably just relax and look after the kids," Colin presumed.

"And you?" Hailey asked Lily.

"I don't know. At least, I dunno about what we'll do before the Charity Pokémon Tournament is on," Lily pondered. Keenan beamed with delight.

"That's tonight?!" Daphne exclaimed. "Are you going to watch it?"

"Yes, we are," Lily smiled.

"Mum, I think that's something we should do, too!" Daphne suddenly said loudly.

"We already are," Hailey laughed. "Seriously, you can remember the exact year the very first Apricorn Poké Ball was made – and what Apricorn Poké Ball it was – but not a televised event?"

"Honestly," Daniel smirked. Daphne blushed as she laughed timidly.

"In any case, I daresay this is where we part for the day," Colin said calmly. "You take care of yourself, Hayden."

"You, too," Hayden nodded. Colin, Hailey, Daphne and Daniel released their Salamence, Altaria and twin Unfezant from their Poké Balls respectively and climbed onto their backs. Daphne helped Peggy onto Sally's back just in front of her.

"See you later, gang! David, let's go!"

"Rhrrrrrrrrrrrrrgh!" David roared as he was the first to take flight. Annabelle, Sally and Daniel's Unfezant soon took flight and followed the large Dragon Pokémon. After the four flyers disappeared from sight, Harvey and Troy released their Dragonite and Archeops respectively from their Poké Balls and climbed onto their backs.

"Until next time, bro!" Harvey smiled. Hayden nodded. "Rena?"

"Drrrrrgh!" The large Dragonite darted into the air and sped off in the distance; it didn't take long for Harvey to disappear from sight at all.

"Alexa. You get plenty of rest, okay?" Troy said kindly.

"Will do. Thanks, Troy."

"And enjoy your spa tomorrow! That'll definitely help you relax," Troy winked. "Okay, Zane! Home time!"

"ARR!" Zane happily flapped his wings as he took flight and flew into the sky. Alexa gave Troy and the Archeops a little wave, but neither saw the gesture.

"So, Keenan, have you made a full decision yet?" Hayden asked curiously. Keenan nodded quickly.

"Yeah; I would like to get one," he said clearly. Hayden smiled.

"Okay. That means we have something to do while the girls are at the spa," he said optimistically. Keenan nodded.

"But what are we going to do before the Pokémon Tournament comes on?" Lily asked.

"Well...we could watch you goof around in one of Keenan's video games," Hayden said teasingly. Alexa and Keenan laughed, but Lily raised an eyebrow.

"Sorry I asked," she said sarcastically.

"But, seriously, though, what do you feel like doing?" Hayden asked kindly.

"Maybe read my book," Lily said with slight uncertainty.

"I'll probably test the hotel's Internet connection and give Grandpa a call," Alexa said merrily.

"That's a good idea, sweetie," Lily smiled.

"After that, I can research Poké Gear selling prices if you'd like?" Alexa questioned towards Hayden.

"You don't have to, Lexie, I can sort it out," Hayden smiled. "But thank you for the offer." Alexa nodded.

"I know what I'll be doing," Keenan said keenly.

"All right then," Lily said as she released Cheryl from her Poké Ball. "Cheryl, if you'd be so kind?"

"Gardevoir," Cheryl nodded; her voice was slightly deeper and far more mature in comparison to Shandra's. Cheryl placed her hands together as she closed her eyes softly and a rainbow glow outlined her body. Her eyes suddenly opened widely and suddenly vanished, along with Lily, Hayden, Keenan and Alexa.

 _To be continued..._


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven – Sitting In**

Cheryl relaxed and opened her ruby red eyes as she, Lily, Hayden, Alexa and Keenan instantaneously appeared in their hotel room in a brilliant white flash.

"I love travelling like this," Hayden laughed. Lily smiled as she took a Poké Ball in her hand.

"Thank you so much, Cheryl; you can take a nice rest now."

"Gardevoir," Cheryl smiled kindly as the Poké Ball unleashed the red energy beam from its central button, absorbing the Gardevoir inside it. With her Pokémon safe in her Poké Ball, Lily sat down on the nearest armchair and sighed contentedly as she picked up a book from the coffee table.

"I don't know about the rest of you, but I think that was a very nice morning," she said as she opened the book, beginning to read its first page.

"Me too," Keenan nodded.

"I think Jollie's one step closer to achieving her sough-after evolution, so, yeah, I agree," Alexa smiled.

"She and Kyle have certainly improved since they last battled, that's for certain," Hayden grinned. "And I think the two of you handled yourselves well, too," he added, gently placing a hand on Alexa and Keenan's shoulders. "Well done."

"Thanks, Dad!" Keenan said happily.

"Especially you, Alexa; that was your first proper battle in, what, three years?"

"Y-yeah," Alexa replied rather glumly. Hayden smiled kindly at her.

"You did great," he said reassuringly. "So the Ranger Union hasn't killed the Pokémon Trainer inside of you then?" he questioned jokingly. Alexa looked at her father with a raised eyebrow. Keenan suddenly showed some slight concern.

"Is what Daniel said still bugging you?" he asked.

"A little, I suppose," Alexa admitted. "I'm trying not to think about it, though; I've enough on my mind as it is." For a fleeting moment, Hayden felt uneasy, but soon smiled.

"Nonetheless, you're still a brilliant Trainer; that's what counts." Alexa smiled warmly.

"Thanks, Dad."

"Right! Keenan. If your Poké Gear is to be replaced with a Xtransceiver, you and I need to make a note of your contacts," Hayden said suddenly. "Are you up for doing that now?"

"Yeah!" Keenan said eagerly.

"I'll check what's on my laptop while you're doing that," Alexa said as she headed to one of the bedrooms. Keenan and Hayden sat on the sofa as Keenan fished out his Poké Gear from his pocket. Hayden, meanwhile, searched around him for a notepad and a pen. Alexa chuckled to herself as she heard Hayden moaning after his mobile phone began to ring.

"For crying out loud..!"

With her laptop in her arms, Alexa sat on her bed, taking care not to sit on her Nidoqueen plush, and turned it on. Once the laptop was fully loaded, she logged into her email account and checked for any new emails. She was surprised to see one in her inbox, but quickly discovered it was one she'd already read. She opened it up and read it again regardless.

"Alexa. Keith has had a very stern talking to regarding the night of your last mission – or, rather, the aftermath of said mission. Erma and I acknowledge the stress the pair of you were under following your Johto mission, but Keith had no right to take his frustration out on you. He has been reprimanded for his behaviour towards you, but the two of you really need to sort yourselves out. I sincerely hope you are feeling better following last night's...incident. Hastings."

Alexa showed no hesitation in deleting the email and quickly logged off of her account, hoping to forget the words she saw on her monitor. She suddenly decided to open her video communication programme and began to contact someone from her list. She quickly gave the built-in webcam a wipe with the bottom of her pale orange T-shirt before Ian appeared on the screen.

"Lexie! This is a nice surprise! How are you?" he smiled happily. Alexa instantly cheered up after hearing her grandfather's kind voice, but her smile weakened as she thought of how to answer his question.

"Yeah, I think so. Dad helped me replace my Poké Gear!" She held up her right wrist and rotated it slowly, allowing Ian to see her Xtransceiver in all its glory. He whistled.

"That's a nice Xtransceiver. Here's mine." Ian held up his left wrist and showed Alexa the black and brown Xtransceiver resting snugly on his wrist.

"I didn't know you had one, Grandpa," Alexa sad in shock as she saw the plain black strap the Xtransceiver was resting on.

"It's still relatively new; I placed an order for it not too long after Jordan's arrest," Ian explained. "I'll contact you on it later and register one another, okay?"

"Sounds good to me," Alexa said cheerfully. "But, um...there's something else as well..."

"Fire away."

"I, uh...had a run-in with Keith..."

"In Unova?" Ian asked in confusion. "I take it he was on a mission?"

"I think so." Ian noticed her uncertainty.

"What do you mean, you think so?"

"When I said I had a "run-in" with him, I...we...crashed. Into one another."

"Are you all right?"

"I think so; I'm going back to the hospital the day after the Contest, so I'll find out then." She sighed. "I just...can't remember what happened..."

"Can't remember? Did you hit your head, by any chance?" Ian asked.

"Twice, Troy reckons," Alexa replied. "I suffered from concussion."

"That's not surprising, considering what you just said," Ian said calmly. "Chin up, Lexie, you'll be right as rain in no time flat! I'm sure of it!"

"Physically speaking, at least..."

"Oi. Less of the pessimism."

"But..." Alexa sighed silently. "What if-"

"Look, it's going to be all right," Ian said nicely. "The two of you were as thick as thieves from what your father told me; if that holds water, then there's no doubt in my mind that you and Keith are going to end up reconciling."

"What makes you so sure?" Alexa asked, surprise written all over her face regarding Ian's confidence.

"Let's just call it a hunch," Ian winked. "Seriously, though, Alexa, you two will work things out when the time is right."

"I-I hope so..."

"...forgiveness is a wonderful thing, Alexa."

"Huh?" Alexa looked directly at Ian in confusion; she immediately noticed his warm smile.

"It can repair even the most damaged of hearts. If you can find it in yours to forgive Lupin for his disrespect towards you, you can find it in you to forgive Keith for this. I'm sure of it." Alexa shed a single tear as she smiled lovingly at her grandfather.

"T-thanks, Grandpa..." She wiped the tear from her eye.

"My pleasure, Lexie. Oh! Before I forget..."

"Yes?"

"Tell your parents to get a Xtransceiver," Ian smirked. "If I have one, so should they." Alexa laughed.

"I'll pass the message on. Thanks for talking to me, Grandpa, I really appreciate it."

"The feeling's mutual, sweet pea," Ian smiled happily. "Catch you later, Alexa."

"Bye, Grandpa." The two of them ended their communication at very nearly the exact same time. Alexa then shut down her laptop and closed it up before standing up from the bed.

"So we're seeing the Charity Pokémon Tournament this evening?" Keenan asked excitedly as Hayden wrote down a string of eight numbers on the notepad; 02738284.

"Seems like it, yeah," he replied. "Hailey's going to be busy with Eric's rehearsal and Harvey's going to be relaxing at home on Samphire Island, so it's just us this evening."

"Sounds good," Alexa said suddenly. Hayden, Keenan and Lily looked up at her as she entered the room, closing the bedroom door behind her.

"Everything all right with your laptop?" Hayden asked.

"Yeah, it's fine. I spoke to Grandpa just now."

"How's he doing?" Lily asked.

"He's fine. He asked me to pass on a message; Mum, Dad, you should get Xtransceivers too." Hayden and Lily looked at one another in bewilderment at the sudden proposal. "That was his message in a nutshell."

"What made him say that, sweetie?" Lily asked curiously.

"I showed him mine and he showed me his," Alexa replied, holding up her Xtransceiver.

"Grandpa has one?! That's so cool!" Keenan grinned gleefully.

"What do you think, Hayden?" Lily asked. Hayden smiled at his wife.

"To be honest, after what I heard yesterday, getting a Xtransceiver sounds like a great idea! And I can save a lot of time if I'm able to talk to both my brother AND sister at the same time. Besides, I saw one or two strap designs that caught my interest while I was waiting for the store manager to get to me...I can at least get one of my own tomorrow while Keenan and I are there. What about you, Lily?"

"You can choose mine, Hayden; Alexa and I will be at the spa with Hailey tomorrow," Lily smiled kindly.

"You're sure about that?"

"I'll help you with it, Dad!" Keenan offered willingly. Hayden smiled and patted his son on his shoulder.

"Thanks, kiddo." Hayden suddenly moaned again when his mobile phone began to ring again. He looked at the caller ID, but didn't recognise the number. He picked up the incoming call and held the phone to his ear. "Thorndyke speaking. Hm? Mr Howard!" Hayden suddenly stood up from the sofa and walked into the second bedroom; Alexa moved aside slightly to allow her father full access to the room, but he briefly ruffled her hair as he walked passed her. "No, I just didn't expect you to get back to me so soon." Hayden closed the door behind him.

"What was that all about?" Keenan asked in confusion as Lily proceeded to move from the armchair to the sofa. Alexa approached him and Lily and sat next to him on the sofa's armrest.

"I think that's the manager for the XCommunications store here in Castelia," she replied. "I saw him with Dad after I bought my Xtransceiver." Lily looked at the notepad Hayden left behind.

"Shall we finish this off while your father's occupied?"

"Okay," Keenan said as he looked at his Poké Gear; the number 02738284 was displayed on the top screen.

"How do I...?" Alexa stood up from the armrest and looked at the idle Poké Gear. She pressed the down button on the touch screen, changing the top screen's display from 02738284 to 71649274.

"Like that," she smiled. "It's all on the touch screen."

"Oh, right. Thanks, sweetie." Noticing Hayden hadn't written down the new number, Lily took the pen in her left hand and wrote the number down herself. Lily pressed down on the Poké Gear's touch screen and was about to write down the new number displayed.

"Uh, I don't think I need that one now," Keenan said suddenly.

"Really? Okay then, um...how do I delete it?"

"Like this," Alexa smiled as she pressed the icon that resembled a trash can on the touch screen; the displayed number instantly disappeared and was replaced with a new one entirely.

"Thank you, Alexa," Lily smiled. Hayden suddenly returned to the room, trying very hard to hide his excitement. Lily, Alexa and Keenan looked up at him in confusion.

"Is everything all right, Hayden?" Alexa and Keenan smiled.

"It's good news, I take it?" Alexa asked. Hayden took a deep breath.

"Let me put it like this; the prospect of having XCommunications in the Department Stores is close to being a reality!"

"Oh, Hayden, that's wonderful!" Lily said ecstatically.

"Howard said the company's owner – Jonathan Gulliver – will contact me and arrange a meeting with me sometime next week," Hayden explained.

"Next week?" Alexa questioned, showing very slight concern.

"Don't worry about it, Lexie, we'll all be home by the time I get the call. Assuming the rest of the week goes well, at least," Hayden said assuringly.

"Well, I think that's fantastic news," Lily said joyfully. "And the fact that you're getting a Xtransceiver tomorrow will show Mr Gulliver that you support his business!" Hayden looked at his wife with a perplexed look on his face.

"...I never thought of that."

Keith watched rather anxiously as the doctor examined the egg with her stethoscope. They were in a modestly sized medical examination room with numerous medical-related posters and leaflets pinned to the nearby cork board with many different coloured pins; some were about flu vaccinations, some about alcohol abuse and others about giving up smoking. A laptop sat on the desk opposite the examination bed the egg was resting on. An Audino was sitting patiently at the chair in front of the laptop, smiling at her partner and Keith.

"Is it all right?" Keith asked worriedly.

"In my experience...yep, the egg's perfectly fine," the doctor smiled as she looked directly at Keith. "In fact, it's almost ready to hatch!"

"Hatch?" Keith gulped.

"Pokémon don't stay as eggs forever, you know," the doctor giggled as she placed the stethoscope around her neck. "But you're doing really well with this little gem!"

"What if I do something wrong and it doesn't hatch properly?!" Keith panicked.

"This is your first egg, isn't it?" the doctor asked kindly.

"Y-yeah," Keith confirmed. "I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing..."

"Well, whatever you ARE doing, keep it up; like I said, you're doing really well with it," the doctor smiled kindly as she carefully returned the egg to Keith. Keith felt the egg moving slightly as soon as the doctor removed her hands from it. "Just keep doing what you're doing and the little gem will hatch with no problem! Just..."

"What?"

"Take the egg out when it DOES want to hatch, okay, sweetie?" Keith laughed nervously.

"Okay, I can do that. Thank you, Doctor!"

"My pleasure, hun; come and find me if you have any other concerns."

Night loomed over the open roof arena, but its silvery radiance was outclassed by the very many floodlights beaming their artificial glow down on the enormous field beneath them. Cheering and applause roared from thousands of excited spectators in the audience.

"Welcome back, folks! We're here live at the Indigo Plateau in Kanto for the second half of this Charity Pokémon Tournament!" declared a male announcer from the commentators box as he pushed his squared spectacles further up his face. "It's very simple; it's a Pokémon League style tournament, minus the stakes! All profit made from tonight will go towards Second Chance, the charity dedicated to finding a cure for cancer in Pokémon!"

Two individuals walked onto the arena from opposite entrances; the girl was accompanied by a Charizard with a yellow scarf around his neck, while the boy walked alongside a Rhyperior with a small upper horn.

"As this is a charity tournament, there are no real stakes; all of the participants will be battling against one another, regardless of any victories or defeats! Everyone will be battling the other Trainers, so we're not short of any entertainment here tonight!"

Four jumbotrons, one on each wall of the arena, suddenly displayed other battles consecutively taking place; one displayed a Garchomp battling a Milotic, another displayed a Seviper biting an Arcanine's shoulder, the third showcased a Flareon masterfully dodging a Skuntank's Sludge Bomb attack and the final one showed a Mienshao getting hit by a Skarmory's drilling peck attack.

"Coming up next is what looks like Charizard versus Rhyperior!" the announcer declared. "Unless I'm mistaken again... Regardless, this looks like it will be another must-see battle, and that's no mistake!"

"Ready, Jimmy?" the girl asked, looking somewhat confident in herself. The boy smirked at his opponent as his Rhyperior stepped onto the arena.

"Bring it on, Sarah," he retorted jokingly. "Let's go, Missy!"

"RHEEEEEEEEEEERGH!" the Rhyperior roared in a slightly effeminate voice.

"Go for it, Alexander!"

"RHRRRRRRRGH!" the Charizard roared loudly in a deep voice as he flew onto the arena. The referee looked between the two Pokémon carefully.

"Begin!" he yelled loudly, holding up the red and green flag in his hands.

"Missy, Stone Edge!" Jimmy instructed quickly. Two crossing rings of blinding white energy began to circle around Missy as they soon formed large jagged stones.

"Alexander, take flight!" Sarah retaliated. Alexander snorted, spitting a small ember from his mouth in the process, as he flapped his wings and flew into the air.

"RHEEEEEEEEEEERGH!" Missy unleashed the sharp stones, firing them at the airborne Flame Pokémon. However, Alexander managed to fly over the rocky onslaught.

"Dammit," Jimmy cussed under his breath.

"Now, Alexander, use Hidden Power!" Sarah directed firmly. Alexander growled deeply as his body – mainly his wings - began shining in a deep green aura. The Charizard quickly flapped his wings at the Rhyperior, sending a large wave of artificial leaves at the Drill Pokémon. Missy held her incredibly thick arm in front of her face as the fake leaves sliced across her tremendously thick skin, slicing it in some places; blood started to ooze from the lacerations.

"Despite the clear type advantage against it, Charizard retaliates with a powerful Hidden Power attack!" the announcer exclaimed. "Hidden Power...it's quite the enigmatic attack, even among professionals like Professor Oak!"

"Missy, are you all right?!" Jimmy yelled with concern. Missy lowered her arm and grunted; she started to bleed, but she was far from defeated. "Good. Now, use Rock Slide!"

"RHEEEEEEERGH!" Missy complied as her entire body shone in a red light, causing large grey boulders to fall on top of Alexander, who failed to react in time.

"Alexander!"

"Ouch! That had to hurt!" the announcer recoiled. The Charizard fell to the ground with a grunt; he struggled to stand up, but the final boulder crashed into his back, knocking him down again.

"Alexander! Are you okay!?" Sarah asked loudly. Alexander grunted and growled as he struggled onto his feet.

"Looks like this battle is over before it's even begun, folks!" the announcer said excitedly. "Then again, the last time I said that, the battle kept going anyway..."

"Try a Dragon Pulse attack!" Sarah yelled. Alexander inhaled deeply and breathed out a string of green flames from his mouth.

"Rock Wrecker!" Jimmy commanded. Missy cupped her hands together, forming a boulder that grew in size as more smaller shards were pressed against it with the aid of a pretty red aura. Eventually, Missy fired the massive rock directly into the Dragon Pulse attack; Rock Wrecker flew across the pulse attack effortlessly, neutralising it in the process.

"Iron Tail!" Sarah cried quickly. Alexander quickly flew into the air and slammed his tail, shining in a metallic light, down on the large rock, halting its trajectory instantly.

"Clever move!" Hayden complimented. He, Lily, Alexa and Keenan sat on the sofa in their hotel room, watching the entire battle on the flat-screen television opposite them. "Isn't that what Phoenix tends to do, Lexie?"

"Using offensive moves defensively? Yeah," Alexa nodded. "But he mostly does that with Steel Wing; he hasn't once used it as an actual attack."

"Really?" Lily questioned with intrigue.

"He mainly learned Steel Wing to help with the Fuchsia Gym," Alexa explained further. "It protected him from the Poison attacks. Since then, Steel Wing's been Phoenix's special defensive attack rather than an offensive one."

"Very clever," Hayden smiled.

"I guess she took a leaf out of your book," Lily laughed.

"Either that or it's an amazing coincidence," Alexa said quietly.

"Looks like Charizard's fire is still burning, folks; it's not ready to admit defeat just yet, so things could get even more interesting yet!" the announcer said keenly.

"Not bad, Sarachi," Jimmy smiled. "But you're not the only one with tricks up their sleeve! Missy! Surf's up, girl!"

"RHEEEEEEERGH!" A violent roar from the Rhyperior miraculously conjured up a large wave from underneath her feet; she then rode on the huge wave that threatened to crash down on the awestruck Charizard.

"When you're done gawking, Seismic Toss!" Sarah exclaimed, sounding fairly annoyed. Alexander flew towards Missy and somehow managed to push her off of the tidal wave. He then tossed her towards the ground, over his head, before the Rhyperior could react, causing her to crash into the arena. The tidal wave ceased, but the water spilled almost all over Sarah's side of the arena as the water ended up passing her feet.

"And a Seismic Toss saved Charizard from a watery defeat!" the announcer stated, almost laughing at his own joke. "I wonder how much longer these two Pokémon will be able to hold out for..."

"Missy, Stone Edge once more!" Jimmy called.

"Hidden Power, Alexander!" Sarah instructed. Simultaneously, Alexander shone in his bright green aura as Missy's crossing rings of light circled her to form sharp shards of rock. Both attacks fired at precisely the same time, both Alexander and Missy roaring as they released their techniques. Stone Edge and Hidden Power passed one another and struck their targets at the exact same moment, causing them both to roar in agony.

"OH! It's a double whammy, folks! We don't see many of those; savour this moment, you may never see anything like it again!"

Missy and Alexander fell onto the ground on their backs and struggled to even sit up. However, eventually, both Pokémon slumped onto their backs, unconscious.

"Both Charizard and Rhyperior are unable to battle!" the referee declared as he held up both flags again. "This battle is a tie!"

"Good effort on both parts," Keenan smiled. "But does the commentator have to be so obnoxious?"

"He's a commentator, kiddo; they're ALL obnoxious," Hayden replied. Keenan laughed while Alexa huddled slightly closer to Hayden, who placed his arm around his daughter.

Alexander and Missy were recalled into their Poké Balls before both Jimmy and Sarah met in the middle of the half-soaked arena.

"Good game," Jimmy said kindly. Sarah nodded.

"Yeah, you too. So...Missy knows Surf, huh?"

"Got the idea from you and your Rhyperior," Jimmy smirked.

"Wanna get a drink or something?" Sarah asked suddenly.

"Sure," Jimmy nodded as he and Sarah walked out of the arena together.

"It's always nice to see both Trainers being civil to each other after a battle, no matter which one loses or wins," the announcer smiled. "Then again, there's technically neither a loser nor a winner this time...but, hey, it's a charity tournament, so who cares?!"

"Case in point," Keenan sighed. Lily laughed as she began to stroke her annoyed son's hair.

"Just ignore him, sweetie."

"He's so loud; it's hard to ignore him," Keenan complained. "Alex, were the commentators at your Pokémon League matches this annoying?"

"To be honest, Keenan, I think they've gotten more annoying since my battles in the Sinnoh League," Alexa lamented.

"That doesn't surprise me," Hayden said, gently and slowly rubbing his arm up and down Alexa's arm.

"Right, don't go away yet, folks, because there's still more battles to you to enjoy! And I think..." the announcer stopped mid-sentence as two more Trainers walked onto the arena from the opposing entrances; the girl wearing what looked like a purple hooded jumper was accompanied by a a very cheerful and optimistic Stoutland, while the pale skinned boy with a tuft of navy blue hair poking out from his gold and silver cap was accompanied by a content-looking Slowking. "Yep, we have another one on the way right now!"

"All annoying announcers aside, I think this was a very good idea," Lily said sweetly. "Especially after such a busy morning."

"This morning you saw a battle then and there...this evening we're watching a series of them on live television..."

"And?" Hayden asked as he smiled towards Alexa.

"It's just an observation, that's all," Alexa shrugged. "Today's been battle-heavy, that's all. I'm not complaining, but, like I said, it's just an observation."

"That's true. But at least these battles are for a good cause," Lily smiled.

"And it's interesting to see other people's Pokémon in action!" Keenan added. "At least I think so." Alexa smiled.

"I like seeing the different strategies. I'd pick up a few for myself if mine weren't improvised."

"Improvised strategies are the best ones," Hayden stated. "The opponent won't be able to counter them unless they themselves improvise."

"Yeah." Hayden briefly looked at Alexa with mild worry.

"Are you all right?"

"I'm a little tired, that's all," Alexa answered. "Like I said, today's been battle-heavy."

"I think seeing these battles is wearing you out at this point!" Keenan laughed.

"You battled too, remember?" Alexa asked with a smirk on her face. Hayden and Lily laughed as Keenan chuckled nervously.

"So, Alexa, how do you feel about battling again after today?" Hayden asked curiously. Alexa's smirk grew into a much warmer smile.

"Better," she replied simply.

 _To be continued..._


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve – Preparations**

The morning sun was shining brightly over Castelia City as Hayden, Lily, Keenan and Alexa exited their hotel. Keenan carried his content Vaporeon in his arms while Cheryl stood next to Lily and Alexa, who were opposite Hayden and Keenan.

"Are you sure you want me to choose your Xtransceiver, Lily?" Hayden asked. Lily chuckled.

"Hayden, it's quite all right, honestly. I'm not fussy."

"But...if you're not there, how will we know what strap size you are?" Keenan asked. Hayden slammed his head into his palm and moaned.

"I forgot about that!"

"It's okay, Dad, she can try mine on," Alexa offered as she pulled her green and black Xtransceiver from her right wrist and held it towards her mother. "Mine's a size 2 strap; I think we can determine what size you'll need based on how well this one fits."

"Thank you," Lily said kindly as she carefully took her daughter's Xtransceiver.

"Good thinking, Lexie," Hayden grinned as Lily tried sliding the Xtransceiver over her hand. She struggled a little, but the Xtransceiver eventually set itself on her wrist.

"Hmm...it feels a bit tight..."

"I think that means a size 3 strap is best for you," Hayden presumed as Lily struggled to push the Xtransceiver off of her wrist.

"Does that mean anything?" she asked as Alexa tried to carefully pull the Xtransceiver off of her mother's wrist.

"It's just a regular size, that's all. Alexa tried all of the sizes, but size 3 was slightly too big for her. 4 and 5 were ridiculously big for her," Hayden explained.

"Got it," Alexa said quietly as Lily was freed from the slightly too tight Xtransceiver.

"Thanks, sweetie," Lily smiled as Alexa returned her Xtransceiver to its proper place. "Size 3 it is then, I suppose."

"Hey, Alex? How did you choose your Xtransceiver?" Keenan asked. Alexa simply shrugged.

"Green's my favourite colour."

"And the strap?" Alexa looked at the Blitzle stripe pattern on her Xtransceiver strap.

"I dunno. I guess it just appealed to me the most with its simplicity." Alexa looked at her younger brother again. "They had a lot more designs than I thought, ranging from simplistic to artistic."

"Sounds like choosing the Xtransceiver and strap will be a chore in its own right," Lily laughed.

"Never mind the Xtransceiver, it's choosing the strap that'll be the chore," Alexa retorted with a slight laugh of her own. "Though I guess I can have more than one; you kind of need to remove the Xtransceiver from it to upload your own images and songs anyway – that reminds me, I kinda need to do that at some point..."

"Another reason to use your laptop, huh?" Hayden joked. "I don't think I'll have much difficulty in finding mine, since I had a good look at the place while Alexa was choosing hers," he added, smiling at his wife.

"I hope you find something you like," Lily said kindly. "It's almost 10:30, we should be off now."

"Have a good time, girls, we'll meet you outside the spa when we're done," Hayden said nicely.

"Take your time; I think we'll be a couple of hours," Lily laughed nervously, having spotted Alexa's disgruntled look.

"Hours?" she groaned.

"Try not to worry about it, Lexie," Hayden said assuringly. "It's a day to relax, remember?" Alexa started to wish she hadn't agreed to the proposal, but it was too late to back out of it now.

"I'll try to."

"Remember or relax?" Keenan asked quizzically.

"Both." Lily laughed as Cheryl closed her eyes softly.

"We'll see you around lunchtime," she waved before disappearing, along with Cheryl and Alexa, in an instantaneous flash of white light. Keenan and Hayden faced one another.

"First thing's first, kiddo; let's sell that Poké Gear of yours."

"Right!" Keenan nodded eagerly. Iara stared at Hayden with a smile.

With a brief white flash, Cheryl, Lily and Alexa instantly appeared in front of a very plain-looking building; the exterior almost looked like a brown garden shed. As Lily thanked Cheryl for her efforts and returned the Gardevoir to her Poké Ball, Hailey walked over to her and Alexa.

"Hey, you made it! You really know how to cut it close, Lily, it's 10:29!" Hailey laughed.

"Oh, really? I thought we'd be here at 10:30 on the dot."

"In any case, shall we go in?" Hailey asked excitedly.

"Yes, let's," Lily nodded as she and Hailey walked through the solid white double doors together. Alexa followed behind them and was stunned to see the interior. The main lobby looked very relaxing indeed; the walls were painted with a gentle cream colour that was complimented brilliantly by some dull amber lighting that hung from the ceiling above, shining only slightly on the black and white ceramic flooring. The waiting seats in the centre of the lobby were all in the same dull light brown colour, looked immensely comfortable and were all circled around a large pillar that doubled as an aquarium, which was home to several small tropical Pokémon such as Finneon, Luvdisc, Skrelp and Shellder. There were also various pieces of artwork hanging on the walls around the lobby, secured inside marvellous gold plated frames, each depicting a different scene that looked equally as breathtaking and masterfully painted. As she tried to listen to the calming music playing faintly in the background, Alexa also noticed how shiny the deep brown mahogany desk looked, and she hadn't noticed the marble worktop until Hailey finally spoke up.

"Hi, Trisha!" she greeted with familiarity. The dark skinned receptionist lifted her head up from behind the desk and looked at Hailey, pushing her oval shaped glasses over her ocean blue eyes. A smile crept onto her face.

"Hello, Hailey. Are you here for the usual?" Trisha asked politely.

"You know it," Hailey nodded. "This time, I have my sister-in-law and niece joining me." Trisha looked at Lily and Alexa with a friendly smile.

"How do you do?" she greeted modestly before looking down at a book in front of her. "Well, you're right on time, so let's get you ladies seen to, okay?"

"Can I just ask what the "usual" is?" Alexa asked as Trisha stood up from her office chair.

"It consists of three treatments; a facial, a full body massage and a mani-pedi, all given in that order," Trisha explained. Alexa blinked.

"Huh; I guess I was expecting mud baths and such."

"Oh, we do have mud baths here," Trisha smiled nicely. "But those are mostly for full day spa treatments."

"Which is a bit much for my tastes," Hailey said shyly. "I mean, deluxe is nice and all, but basic is sometimes the best way to go. At least, that's what my mother used to say," she added as she and Lily followed Trisha into a different room; lockers were lined along three of the four walls and long wooden benches were placed in the centre of the stone tiled flooring.

"Right then, I'll let Alphonse know you're here. In the meantime," Trisha began as she took three identical towels from the securely locked airing cupboard and placed them on one of the benches near Hailey, Lily and Alexa. "Please remove most of your clothes in preparation for the treatments you'll be receiving."

"Thanks, Trisha!" Hailey grinned.

"I'll see you in a couple of hours, Hailey," Trisha said as she left the changing rooms. Alexa took one of the large white cotton towels and placed it closer to her.

"What's the matter, Alexa?" Hailey asked as she quickly began unbuttoning her white blouse. "Nervous?"

"If some guy's going to run his hands up and down my body, yes," Alexa replied as she unclipped and pulled her necklace from around her neck.

"You mean Keith never did that with you?" Hailey laughed.

"Hailey, shush!" Lily hissed quietly as she completely removed her sky blue blouse and folded it up nearly. "There's nothing to worry about, sweetie, these people are trained professionals."

"Besides, Alphonse isn't like that," Hailey smiled as she pulled her blouse off and tossed it into the locker nearest to her. "So you've nothing to worry about."

"Sorry...I'm not used to all of this," Alexa said anxiously as she pulled her pale red T-shirt over her head.

"First time for everything!" Hailey beamed. "Just relax, you'll be fine!"

Hayden and Keenan walked into XCommunications, the familiar setting already bringing a smile to Hayden's face; the many shelves lined around the store were as full as they were during his visit, but he could swear the straps on sale were different colours last time. There were fewer Xtransceivers displayed in the glass cabinet underneath the cash registers, while the accessories shelves looked fuller than previously with the addition of black USB cables and screen protectors. A curly-haired sales assistant happily approached Hayden and Keenan.

"Welcome to XCommunications, how may I—oh! Haven't I seen you before?" Shelly asked in mild shock.

"Hello again," Hayden greeted. "We're looking for three Xtransceivers; can you help us?"

"...three? Begging your pardon, sir, but there's only two of you?" Hayden chuckled.

"The third one's for my wife; she has a prior engagement and has given me the all clear to choose her Xtransceiver in her absence." Shelly smiled.

"Of course I can help you – again. Why don't we take a seat and get you both measured?" Shelly escorted Hayden and Keenan to the rounded seating area and took the measuring straps from the built-in cabinet as Hayden and Keenan sat down in front of her. As she sat down, Shelly smiled sweetly at Keenan. "Do you need me to explain what the Xtransceiver's capable of?"

"No thank you," Keenan declined. "I can ask my sister about it later."

"That's good to know. One more thing; which wrist will you be wearing the Xtransceiver on?" Keenan looked at both of his wrists.

"My left," he answered, holding out his left arm to Shelly. "Otherwise it'll get in my way when I'm writing."

"Does it actually matter? Out of curiosity, mind you; I was wondering because my wife's left handed, and she's not here to measure herself properly," Hayden stated.

"It's all right, sir. And, no, it technically doesn't matter; it's just a personal preference of mine to measure the wrist the Xtransceiver's destined for," Shelly grinned as she tried to carefully run the size "1" strap down Keenan's hand. "How does that feel?"

"Yeah, that feels great!" he nodded.

"Very good," Shelly smiled as she removed the strap from Keenan's wrist. She took the "4" and "5" strap sizes in her hand as she faced Hayden. "And where's yours going to sit, sir?"

"Left; my son makes a good point," Hayden chuckled as he held out his left arm, allowing Shelly to slip the size "4" strap over his hand.

"What happens now?" Keenan asked as Hayden felt the strap fitting perfectly on his wrist.

"I can help you choose your Xtransceiver and the strap you want for it if you'd like," Shelly offered as she pulled the strap off of Hayden's wrist, starting to place the size "5" strap on it in its place.

"They all do the same thing, though, right?" Keenan asked nervously as Hayden rotated the slightly loose strap around his wrist, causing Shelly to laugh sheepishly.

"Yes, they do and I think you're a size 4, sir," she laughed as she removed the strap from his wrist and returned it – and the others – to the cabinet built into the table. She stood up after locking the cabinet again, giving Hayden and Keenan a reason to stand up. "By the way, sir, would you like some help choosing your Xtransceiver?"

"No thank you, I'm perfectly fine. But thanks for the offer," Hayden said modestly. "Would you be willing to help my son, though?"

"Of course I would, sir," Shelly said kindly. She looked down at the boy. "Shall we?" Keenan nodded, but soon looked up at his father.

"What about-"

"It's all right, kiddo, we can choose it together," Hayden said with a wink. Keenan smiled and nodded as she followed Shelly towards a display case of Xtransceivers. Hayden walked casually over to a different display cabinet and examined the displayed Xtransceivers carefully. He was perfectly silent until...

"Mr Thorndyke?"

"Hm?" Hayden looked behind him and spotted an acquainted black-haired gentleman. "Mr Howard, hello again!" he smiled as he turned around and faced the man properly.

"What brings you back here so soon?" Roger asked cheerfully.

"My son and I are looking for Xtransceivers of our own," Hayden replied happily. "And one for my wife; she's not here, though, she has a prior engagement with my daughter."

"That's nice. Oh, did Mr Gulliver manage to call you?" Roger asked curiously.

"He did, yes, and we'll be meeting sometime next week to discuss my proposal," Hayden replied rather keenly.

"That's great news, I'm glad he found the time to call," Roger said merrily. "And I'm sure he'll take extra consideration with your proposal, Mr Thorndyke, since this will be the second, third and fourth Xtransceiver you'd be purchasing from his chain," he laughed.

"Funny you should say that; my wife said something similar last night," Hayden laughed shyly. "It escaped my notice until she brought it up."

"Well, sir, I'd love to talk more, but I have work to be getting on with and I'm already interrupting your Xtransceiver hunt; I'll be looking forward to hearing the outcome of your meeting through the company memo!"

"Have a nice day," Hayden smiled as Roger began to walk away.

"You too, sir, take care!" With Roger going about his own business, Hayden faced the cabinet and resumed looking at the Xtransceivers.

Lily, Hailey and Alexa all lay on separate massage tables, mostly wrapped in large white towels and their hair held back by a white strap placed just above the hairline on their foreheads. Three different male masseurs stood over them, slowly and somewhat firmly running their hands around their faces with some sort of lotion. The room was dimly lit with candlelight, so it was hard to make out the wall colour of the room. Relaxing music played quietly in the room and the smell of a calming lavender filled the room from the few incense burners scattered around the room. Alexa was the only one of the three who remained quiet.

"How often do you come here anyway?" Lily asked curiously.

"At the very least whenever there's a Contest on the way," Hailey replied. "I find it better to get the treatments done the day before the Contest."

"Because it'll last longer?"

"I think so, at least," Hailey replied. "Though I sometimes arrange other appointments and treatments for other reasons, like "I felt like it" or something." Lily laughed.

"If you feel like doing something, sometimes you've got to do it."

"That's actually how I became a frequent client," Hailey laughed. "One of these days, though, I'd like to take Colin and the kids here for a day."

"You mean you haven't?"

"Not Colin AND the kids, no," Hailey replied. "Colin and I came here on our last anniversary; he had some problems with his back at the time."

"Oh, gosh..! What happened to him?" Lily asked worriedly. Hailey laughed nervously.

"He backed into the corner of the fireplace too quickly."

"Ouch! Was he all right?"

"Oh, yeah, he was perfectly fine, especially after the massaging on his back. But you know Colin; I'm kind of surprised he hasn't fallen down the stairs yet."

"I thought he would have," Lily presumed, beginning to chuckle again.

"So did I, considering he trips up over the doorstep 9 times out of 10!"

"Is it the doorstep or the doormat?" Lily asked.

"Um...I think it was the doorstep, considering we've stopped having a doormat outside the house for a few years now; he slipped on it one winter and sprained his ankle."

"Oh dear... Was he all right?"

"Yeah, he was fine; he mostly just wore the support bandage during Christmas. Actually, I should make that my Christmas gift to Colin this year; another spa treatment for us..."

"Would the kids be interested?" Lily asked.

"I don't know, I'd need to ask... Hey, Lily, did you ever have a spa treatment before today?"

"Well, all I had was the manicure, but it was on my wedding day," Lily replied. Alexa frowned a little.

"On the wedding day? As in "on the day" on the day?" Hailey asked in shock.

"Yes; Royce thought it'd look better fresh, if you will," Lily replied calmly.

"I swear, Lily, that brother of yours is something else..."

"Tell me about it; he was the one who did the manicure!" Lily chuckled. She suddenly gasped silently to herself. "Oh, gosh...Alexa, I'm so sorry...are you all right, sweetie?" Alexa merely sighed in response, much to Lily's concern.

Keenan stood in front of the middle cash register, with Iara standing on his shoulders, as Hayden moved over to a different cabinet, holding a black and gold Xtransceiver in his hand. The shop door opened quietly and the woman who had just entered approached Hayden; the sound of her high heels meeting the hard flooring alerted Hayden of her presence.

"You're Hailey's brother, aren't you?" Adelina asked innocently.

"One of them," Hayden replied as he faced the bronze haired woman. "My name's Hayden."

"Adelina," Adelina replied, holding out her hand. Hayden shook her hand with his.

"Yes, I know; you showed up unexpectedly during the battle between Hailey's twins and my two kids."

"I apologise if I've interrupted anything, but when my darling Beautifly saw Hailey in White Forest, I just had to say hello!"

"I take it you don't have a Xtransceiver then?" Hayden questioned, noticing how bare both of her wrists were.

"Of course I do, but I left it at home," Adeline said nervously. Keenan turned away from the cash register, midnight blue and orange Xtransceiver in hand, and saw Adelina talking to his father. Keenan quietly approached the conversation and pretended to look at the Xtransceiver display cabinet nearest to him as he overheard the conversation, occasionally looking in Adelina's direction subtly. "I never realised you don't have a Xtransceiver yet."

"You never asked," Hayden said quickly. "But, right now, I'm trying to find one my wife might like; she's not here to choose for herself, so I've been entrusted to find one on her behalf."

"Where is your wife anyway?" Adelina asked, looking around the store in confusion.

"She and my daughter are spending the morning with Hailey."

"Oh, yes, I forgot about Hailey's ritual," Adelina muttered to herself. "And she's letting you choose her Xtransceiver for her? Your wife, I mean."

"Yeah, we decided to each get one of our own after my dad suggested it, since he seems to have one of his own. Seems like everyone had one but us," Hayden laughed nervously.

"I don't see Xtransceivers as fashion items, but mine certainly looks darling with my entire wardrobe," Adelina said, boasting a little. "So, will I be seeing you in the audience during tomorrow's big day?"

"That was the plan, yes," Hayden confirmed.

"And I take it you'll be cheering for Hailey?" Adelina asked, oddly with a smile on her face.

"Of course we will be," Hayden stated, raising an eyebrow. "Nothing against you of course, but-"

"I understand; she's family, after all. No, it's perfectly fine if you don't support me; I'd just be grateful if you didn't try to boo me off of the stage," Adelina laughed.

"We have no reason to boo you off the stage," Hayden said simply.

"Good, good," Adelina nodded. Keenan glared at Adelina. "Well, I must be going now; I have a date with a large mocha latte. I'll be seeing you tomorrow, Hayden," she said as she walked away from Hayden and, eventually, out of XCommunications. Hayden sighed as Keenan approached him.

"Oh, hey, kiddo," Hayden smiled.

"What did she want?" Keenan asked, suspicion written all over his tone of voice.

"I guess she saw me in the window and wanted to say hello," Hayden shrugged. "In any case, what Xtransceiver did you get?" A smile reached Keenan's face as he held up his Xtransceiver to his father; the Xtransceiver itself was mainly midnight blue with orange as its secondary colour, and its strap was orange with black Growlithe stripes all over it. "Very nice indeed. Why don't we find your mother's Xtransceiver together as we agreed?"

"Sure!"

"Por!" Keenan and Hayden looked around at the many Xtransceivers in the display cabinets in front of them.

Alexa, Lily and Hailey lay on their fronts, each with a towel covering their backsides. The three masseurs were firmly, but gently, massaging a lotion around Alexa, Lily and Hailey's backs. The room had the same ambience as previously, with the smell of lavender being slightly stronger than before and the music having changed to gentle piano music.

"I don't know...it's just...it's like what I told Troy; Keith and I have been through so much together, but I don't know if I can bring myself to trust him after our last fight," Alexa sighed regretfully. "It was like the Keith I knew had left the building; I never realised he could even say such things to me..."

"Do you think he meant what he said, sweetie?" Lily asked worriedly.

"I...I don't know; I was too upset to tell..."

"Well, did he try to apologise afterwards?" Hailey asked.

"Almost immediately after saying what he said if I recall correctly..."

"So maybe he didn't mean it," Hailey said optimistically.

"I dunno; part of me thinks he's right about what he said...maybe I'm not cut out to be a Top Ranger anymore."

"Oh, sweetie, you can't think like that," Lily said with concern. "The two of you managed to put Jordan behind bars in the end!"

"Yeah...when we weren't looking for each other's jugular veins..."

"You were both under pressure because of Jordan's upper hand, that's all," Lily smiled reassuringly.

"I guess so, but we should have handled the stress better... Actually, I'm not totally looking forward to going home; it'll mean I'll need to face him again."

"You never know; he might come here before you get the chance to go home," Hailey guessed.

"That doesn't help anything, Hailey," Lily said as she rolled her eyes. "Listen, sweetie, we'll see what the doctor says at the hospital appointment this Sunday, so don't worry about Keith until then."

"That's the problem; I can't get it out of my head," Alexa sighed. "Whenever I try to think about something, I always remember the fights we had, both during our mission in Johto and afterwards."

"Honey, no relationship is perfect right off the bat; your father and I had plenty of arguments after we met!"

"I know, Mum, I know...Dad told me about it." Alexa sighed. "I just don't know where to begin if I get the chance to talk to him about it..."

"If?" Hailey asked.

"Yeah, I...I'm not totally confident about talking to him...especially after hearing that he was the one I bumped into."

"Ah."

"Alexa, sweetie, it's something that needs to be sorted out, regardless of the outcome," Lily said gently. "But I think you should think very carefully about whether or not your relationship is worth saving."

"Whoa, Lily, are you saying she should think about dumping him?" Hailey asked.

"Kind of. But it's up to you, sweetheart." Alexa sighed; she was in even more of a dilemma than she was before.

"If I may, angel?" asked the masseur running his hands around Alexa's back. "If this boy is worthy of your heart, he will walk to the ends of the earth to repair the damage he caused to it."

"Whoa, Alphonse, you're not usually this philosophical!" Hailey grinned.

"I know, but I needed to say it." Alexa smiled warmly.

"Thank you, I appreciate it." She sighed contentedly. "All I need to do now is go to that appointment and have a dozen pick-me-ups before I speak to him." Lily and Hailey smiled at one another.

Keenan and Hayden exited the store, each wearing their Xtransceivers on their left wrists. Hayden carried a black and purple Xtransceiver in his hand, which he soon placed in his pocket.

"Let's hope your mother likes the Xtransceiver we chose for her," he said rather nervously.

"If she doesn't, she doesn't; we have the receipt, so she'll be able to exchange the whole thing if that's the case," Keenan said casually. "How come you're so nervous?"

"Because I haven't surprised your mother with a gift since before we got married," Hayden replied. "Well...not to this degree, anyway; when it comes to anything else, I know what she likes and doesn't like, but with Xtransceivers..? There was a lot I think she would have liked..."

"It'll be fine, Dad, I'm sure she'll like it," Keenan said optimistically. Hayden ruffled his hair.

"Thanks, kiddo."

"Hey, Hayden!" called a voice Hayden and Keenan recognised instantly. They looked ahead and saw Colin jogging over to them, nearly tripping up over his own feet in the process, with Daniel, Daphne and Peggy. Piper flew alongside Peggy before roosting on her medium auburn hair.

"Hey, Colin! What brings you here?" Hayden asked with a friendly smile.

"Well, the kids go back to school on Monday, so I thought I'd use Hailey's spa break to get some school supplies for the kids," Colin explained, subtly hinting the few plastic bags in his left hand.

"Refresh my memory; do the twins graduate this year or next year?" Hayden asked curiously.

"This year," Colin confirmed. "Their exams start a week after their birthdays."

"We're right here, Dad," Daniel sighed. Colin laughed nervously.

"Sorry, sport."

"So, did you get a Xtransceiver?" Daphne asked eagerly. Keenan held his arm out to his music-loving cousin and showed off his colourful communication device.

"What do you think?" Daphne and Peggy looked at the vibrant colours of Keenan's Xtransceiver.

"Oh, how pretty!" Peggy said gleefully.

"Blu, Blu!"

"Aren't the colours a bit too vibrant?" Daniel questioned as he examined the device.

"Not especially," Keenan shrugged. "There are more vibrant ones in there."

"Yeah, like that neon yellow and neon pink one we saw a few months ago, remember?" Daphne asked. Daniel groaned.

"I swear the minute I saw that thing, I thought my eyes would melt!"

"We never saw one like that, Daniel," Keenan said nervously.

"I sincerely hope nobody bought that ugly mess," Daniel grunted.

"I certainly didn't," Hayden laughed as he held out his left arm; his black and gold Xtransceiver was sitting on a black strap with an orange-red and yellow flame pattern, which was covering half of the strap.

"Nice one, Hayden. Beats mine at any rate," Colin said timidly, showing off the Xtransceiver on his right wrist; the device itself was black and white, while the strap was a mixture of black, white and grey and looked like dark storm clouds.

"There's nothing wrong with it, Colin. Besides, all that matters is that you like the Xtransceiver you've chosen."

"Heh, thanks, Hayden," Colin said gratefully. "Anyway, we should get back to shopping; we still need to get some new shoes."

"I don't think we do," Daniel said in mild protest.

"Hey, don't shoot the messenger; your mother put the shoes on the agenda, not me," Colin said in defence.

"All right, Keenan and I are going to meet Lily and Alexa outside the spa anyway; we should be there by the time they come out anyway, it's quite a walk over Skyarrow Bridge."

"Oh, cripes, yeah, I forgot about that! Sorry to distract you!"

"Don't worry, Colin, it was nice seeing you all," Hayden smiled.

"Will we see you tomorrow?" Peggy asked.

"Yep! We're looking forward to it," Keenan replied joyously.

"Por!" Iara nodded.

"Blu, Blu!" Piper rejoiced.

"Well, we'll see you tomorrow!" Colin said happily as he and the three kids parted ways with Hayden and Keenan. The two approached what appeared to be a gateway to a very large and rather tall bridge.

"Oh, shoot, I forgot to ask about exchanging our Xtransceiver numbers!"

"Alex has everyone's numbers on hers; get them from her and call Aunt Hailey and Uncle Harvey in a three way call to let them have your number."

"Then Hailey can give my number to Colin, who can then give it to the twins if they want it," Hayden concluded. "...three way call? That'd be weird..."

"Sounds weird to say the least," Keenan agreed as he and Hayden made their way onto the bridge, the wind starting to blow in their near identical hair.

"But it will make keeping in touch with them a lot more efficient, that's for sure," Hayden said brightly. "Definitely worth the purchase."

Alexa, Hailey and Lily each sat on a very comfortable plush chair, wearing soft white cotton dressing gowns and matching towels wrapped around their hair. They each had a manicurist and a pedicurist very carefully painting their nails in different colours; Hailey's nails were painted in a vivid scarlet, Lily's were painted in a bright magenta and Alexa's were painted in a mint green colour, and the manicurists and pedicurists were carefully painting a topcoat on the nails.

"So, Hailey, what are your plans for after the Contest?" Lily asked out of interest.

"Well, the kids go back to school on Monday, so Colin's gone shopping with them for school supplies and shoes," Hailey answered. "He decided to use this spa break to go shopping with them."

"Daphne and Daniel graduate from Striaton Academy this year, don't they?" Lily asked.

"Yep. A bit unfair to make them sit their exams after their birthdays, but I don't make the rules," Hailey sighed. "Even though it is a week after their birthdays... Hey, Lily, how's Keenan's schooling coming along?"

"It took him a little while to settle into the routine again after what happened over a month ago, but he's still doing really well," Lily smiled.

"So how come you're homeschooling him anyway? Is it for the same reason Alexa was homeschooled?"

"I don't know why I was homeschooled; I didn't think I was in any position to ask," Alexa replied sheepishly.

"Your father and I believed you and your brother would get a better education if you were taught at home," Lily explained.

"Did you hire a tutor?" Hailey asked.

"We didn't need to, Ian jumped at the opportunity," Lily chuckled. "We actually didn't know Ian was qualified to teach until he told us."

"You'd think the fact his official title of "Dr. Thorndyke" would be an indication of his qualification," Hailey laughed. "So, Lexie, what are your plans for after the Contest?"

"Hmm...hospital, a dozen hot cocoa pick-me-ups and talking to Keith. That's pretty much my plan in a nutshell."

"Sounds like a plan to me, honey," Lily smiled. "Whatever happens, Alexa, your father and I will back you up 100%."

"Thanks, Mum," Alexa smiled kindly. The manicurists and pedicurists all stood up.

"And that's that, ladies," smiled one of the manicurists. "Just let the topcoat dry for 60 seconds and you can leave," he added as he and his colleagues left the room, taking their equipment with them.

"Don't listen to them, girls; this topcoat always takes two whole minutes to dry properly," Hailey said, with a hint of resentment in her voice. "Trust me, I know; I was getting changed one time after leaving it to dry for a minute, and my manicure was ruined the minute my hands went into my pockets. Fortunately, they redid the manicure free of charge as a goodwill gesture."

"Have you told them about it?" Lily asked. "The inferior topcoat, I mean."

"Yeah, but they want to use this topcoat up completely before they order in a better topcoat," Hailey explained. "Why they can't just get a refund on this topcoat from the wholesaler I'll never know..." Alexa examined her mint manicure and admired the glossy look on her nails.

By the time Hayden and Keenan finally arrived in Nacrene City, Alexa, Hailey and Lily exited the spa. Hailey pressed her finger firmly against a few of her fingernails.

"See? I told you two minutes is how long the topcoat takes to dry properly."

"We never said we didn't believe you," Lily said feebly. Alexa looked around and spotted something that caught her attention; she smiled and waved as Hayden and Keenan approached her.

"Hi, girls," Hayden greeted. "You look great!"  
"Thank you, Hayden," Lily said courteously. "How was your endeavour?"

"See for yourself," Hayden replied with a grin as he and Keenan showcased their brand new Xtransceivers to the pampered ladies.

"Very snazzy!" Hailey complimented. "How long did it take you to choose them anyway?" she asked teasingly.

"About half an hour...apiece," Keenan answered bashfully. Hailey laughed.

"It goes to show how much variety there is in that one store alone!"

"Did you have a good time?" Hayden asked curiously.

"As usual, dear brother," Hailey remarked.

"It felt nice, I do have to admit, but it's one of those things that would be less special the more I did it...in my opinion, at least," Lily said nervously. "No offence, Hailey; it was very kind of you to invite us, but-"

"No offence taken, Lily," Hailey said graciously. "I respect your opinion, though, for the record, I don't go as frequently as, say, once every three months; like I said, I go the day before a Contest and for special occasions."

"What about you, Alexa?" Lily asked. "What did you think?"

"I liked it," Alexa replied honestly. "Though I think the facial felt rather pointless..." Hailey chuckled.

"Well, I'd love to stick around and chatter, but I'd better scoot; Colin said he'd be coming home for lunch, so I'd best get lunch on the go. See you all tomorrow, Hayden!"

"Bye, Hailey," Hayden said, waving as his sister began to walk away. "I'll call you later!"

"Looking forward to it!" Hailey called back. With Hailey gone, Hayden faced Lily as he placed a hand in his pocket.

"Let's not forget yours, Lily," he smiled as he pulled out a Xtransceiver from his pocket; the device itself was black and purple, while the strap was a light lilac colour with magenta petals tastefully covering the entire strap. Lily accepted the Xtransceiver and Alexa looked at it from over her mother's shoulder.

"Man, black can go with anything," Alexa smiled. "Great choice, Dad."

"Keenan and I chose it together," Hayden stated as Lily examined the Xtransceiver from all angles. "If you don't like it, Lily, we can-"

"No, no, it's perfect. Thank you both," she smiled kindly as she slipped the Xtransceiver onto her left wrist. "I love it."

"I'm glad to hear it," Hayden smiled warmly. "Now...if I recall, I saw Hailey messing with her nails; what did the manicurists do to yours?" Lily and Alexa showed Hayden and Keenan their glossy nails.

"Oh my gosh, Alex, you're not wearing brown," Keenan said teasingly.

"They didn't have a shade of brown I liked," Alexa muttered.

"They look lovely," Hayden commended. "Well, Keenan and I are pretty much done for the day; is there anywhere you two would like to go?" Lily and Alexa faced one another before considering their responses.

"I don't need to go anywhere in particular," Lily answered. "Alexa?"

"Not me," Alexa replied, shaking her head.

"Fine with us," Hayden smiled. "Have you walked over Skyarrow Bridge yet?"

"No," Lily and Alexa replied in unified confusion.

"It's actually quite a walk...but would you like to walk across it together?" Hayden asked.

"Are you sure you don't just want to go across it again?" Alexa asked playfully.

"Once you've walked across it, Lexie, you'll see why I wanted to cross it again," Hayden laughed as he, Lily, Alexa and Keenan began walking out of Nacrene City, Alexa and Keenan trailing slightly behind their parents.

Keith sighed with content as he lay on his bed, his yellow and black egg gently resting on his chest; he gently held the egg in place with one hand and held a freshly opened glass bottle of cola in his other hand. Robbie and Reese lay on the bed opposite Keith's bed, resting their eyes. Keith occasionally drank fairly small gulps from his bottle and stroked the egg with his thumb from time to time. The sound of a loudspeaker activating caused Keith and the Pokémon to look up at the speaker above the cabin door in confusion.

"Attention, travellers," began a man's voice. "Our next stop is Castelia City, Unova. We will be docking at Liberty Pier at the estimated time of 10am. That is all." Keith frowned.

"So...it's almost time..."

 _To be continued..._


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter Thirteen – The Contest**

The next morning was a picturesque sunny day without a single cloud in the sky or even the smallest gale in the air. Alexa sat on her hotel bed with her black and green Xtransceiver in her hands; she looked through all of her registered contacts as a pure grey Minccino tied her long smooth golden blonde hair in a neat plait whilst standing on the back of Alexa's brown sleeveless turtleneck. Keenan and Iara sat on the bed opposite Alexa's as they looked through Keenan's blue and orange Xtransceiver.

"And Daniel's?"

"Yep," Keenan nodded.

"That's all of them then. Everyone's registered to each other now, I take it?"

"Yep," Keenan nodded again. "Mum & Dad got everyone's contacts last night from Grandpa."

"Ah, that must've saved a lot of time then," Alexa smiled. "I mean, sure, they had to call everyone with their numbers and your number anyway, but, still..."

"It's okay, I don't mind; at least you can save time by calling three Xtransceivers at once," Keenan said optimistically.

"Actually, Dad only called Aunt Hailey and Uncle Harvey; apparently, they've done the rest," Alexa said sheepishly. "Anyway, what's eating you, mate? You've been hiding resentment since yesterday." Keenan lost his smile.

"We saw her yesterday. Adelina."

"In XCommunications? Was she looking for a Xtransceiver?" Alexa asked.

"No, she just spoke to Dad," Keenan grumbled. "I don't know what her angle was, but I didn't like it."

"What sort of things did she talk about?" Alexa asked as she moved over to her brother's hotel bed. Her Minccino clung to her half-plaited hair during the transfer and resumed her task once Alexa sat down.

"It was odd; she asked if we were going to be at the Contest Hall and if we were going to cheer for Aunt Hailey," Keenan elaborated as Iara carefully walked across Alexa's lap to lie on Keenan's. "He said yes on both counts, but she then said it was fine as long as we don't boo her off the stage."

"Why would she say that? We have no reason to boo her as far as we know."

"That's what Dad kinda said," Keenan said. "I don't have a good feeling about her, Alex."

"Me neither; she's harbouring some sort of grudge. But I don't know why she's holding the grudge or what it's all about."

"I have a bad feeling about this Contest," Keenan said worriedly. "I think something's going to happen."

"You reckon?" Alexa asked with curiosity.

"It's just a feeling I have. I can't really explain it..." Alexa placed her hand gently on Keenan's shoulder.

"Don't worry about it; even if something does happen during today's Contest, all we need to be concerned about is showing our support to Aunt Hailey," she said kindly. "Nothing else matters at this point." Keenan smiled at his elder sister.

"Thanks, Alex! Now I can finally look forward to the Contest!" he said excitedly. With a knock at the door, the two siblings faced the door as Hayden poked his head through it.

"You both ready?" he asked.

"We've been ready for a little while," Keenan answered.

"That was until Isabelle started playing with my hair again," Alexa chuckled as she turned her head slightly, showing off the Minccino plaiting her hair. "She shouldn't be too long."

"It's all right, Lexie, I don't think your mother's ready yet anyway," Hayden smiled timidly. "I'll go and check," he said as he quietly closed the door behind him.

"The Contest isn't until half 10, is it?" Keenan asked.

"No," Alexa laughed. "Sometimes it's annoying being the early birds that we are."

"While we're on the subject, Alex, did you ever participate in a Contest yourself?" Keenan asked with intrigue.

"Um..." Alexa lowered her head in thought.

Hayden entered a different bedroom and saw his wife sitting in front of the mahogany vanity mirror. The room essentially looked identical to Keenan and Alexa's hotel bedroom, but the two beds in the room looked as though they were pushed together intentionally. Hayden approached Lily as she began to apply a clear lip gloss over her lips.

"Alexa and Keenan are practically ready," Hayden said suddenly.

"Hayden, don't worry, the Contest doesn't start until half past 10," Lily laughed.

"I know, I just don't want us to be late," Hayden sighed. Lily glanced at her black and purple Xtransceiver quickly before she continued applying the lip gloss.

"But it's 25 to 10!" she laughed again. Hayden stood behind her and placed both hands on her shoulders.

"I'm very much aware of what the time presently is, my darling," he said playfully as he planted a gentle kiss on her cheek. "And it seems Isabelle was in the mood for plaiting Alexa's hair; maybe you and Alexa should match hairstyles," he added cheekily.

"Oh, stop it, Hayden," Lily laughed. "Anyway, I don't see why you're so worried about being late; Cheryl can take us to Nimbasa in no time flat, and the audience doesn't sit down until 10 minutes before the Contest begins."

"I know, I know." Hayden sighed. "Sometimes it's annoying being the early birds that we are."

"I did suggest we go to bed later," Lily smirked as she returned the lip gloss want to its tube and returned it to the left hand drawer. "And that we have a lie in until breakfast."

"I know, and you have the right to say "I told you so" if you so wish," Hayden said, grinning a little as he searched his navy blue belt bag.

"I don't really need to, since you've already acknowledged what I told you," Lily smiled as she stood up from the vanity. "What are you doing now?"

"I'm checking I've got everything I need," Hayden replied as he rummaged through his bag.

"For the fourth time?" Lily asked cheekily. "And you don't really need anything; you'll be in the audience watching a Pokémon Contest, not shopping in Join Avenue." Hayden suddenly pulled out a small blue card and began to read it to himself.

"Oh! Alexa's appointment card for tomorrow morning. I know I'll remember, but I'll hold on to that anyway," he said as he returned the card to the bag.

"That reminds me, how was she when you saw her?" Lily asked abruptly.

"She looked fine to me," Hayden smiled as he closed the bag. "She doesn't seem to be in any pain, at least," he added as he clipped the belt bag around his jeans. "How was she yesterday?"

"Apart from having been worried about her relationship problems, she was perfectly fine," Lily replied with a weak smile. "I am worried about her problems, though. I know they're for her to sort out, but-"

"You're concerned. Lily, you're her mother; of course you'd be concerned," Hayden said reassuringly as he took hold of her hands gently. "I'm worried myself, but it's like you said; it's for her – and Keith – to sort out. All we can do is support her when and if she asks and/or needs it from us. I know that's what my parents told me when you and I had our own problems when we were Alexa's age." Lily's smiled warmed up.

"That genuinely made me feel better. Thank you, sweetheart."

"Any time; that's what I'm here for," Hayden smiled lovingly. To his surprise, Lily quickly pecked a delicate kiss on his lips.

"And we all appreciate it, Hayden." Hayden soon smiled.

"I take it you're ready to go?"

"I've been ready for a little while now," Lily winked. "I was just stalling."

"Stalling, huh?" Hayden asked with a cunning grin on his face. "Maybe we can continue playing the waiting game," he suggested, carefully moving a thin strand of Lily's dirty blonde hair from her face. Lily returned Hayden's smirk.

"I don't think so; we'd be here all day otherwise."

"One of these days, Lily, I'll hold you to that," Hayden teased as he made his way out of the room. Lily laughed as she followed him to the main room. At the exact same instance, Alexa and Keenan departed their room, Isabelle clinging to Alexa's plaited hair happily, much to Alexa's frustration.

"Isabelle, let go."

"Cino!" Isabelle giggled.

"Isabelle, I need to put the band on," Alexa said as she showed the joyful Minccino the small green hair tie in her fingers.

"Min!" Isabelle snatched the hair tie from Alexa and used it to secure Alexa's plait, much to her surprise. "Cino!"

"I think Isabelle wanted to do it," Keenan chuckled.

"You think?" Alexa questioned sarcastically as she held a red and white Poké Ball towards her chuckling Minccino. "Thank you, Isabelle; now return." The Poké Ball's red energy beam absorbed Isabelle, returning her to the rounded capsule, which Alexa then placed in the brown belt bag clipped around her jeans.

"Everybody ready?" Hayden asked as Lily released the gentle Gardevoir from her Poké Ball. Alexa and Keenan smiled and nodded at their father.

"All right then. Cheryl, please take us to Nimbasa's Contest Hall," Lily requested politely. Cheryl smiled at her Trainer sweetly.

"Gar," she nodded. She then closed her ruby red eyes softly as she placed her hands together, as if in prayer, and a rainbow aura veiled her entire body's outline. Her blank white eyes opened widely, emitting a flash of white light.

Instantly after the extremely brief flash faded, Hayden, Lily, Alexa and Keenan found themselves outdoors, near a forever moving crowd of happy and excited people and Pokémon in the presence of a large building; the Contest Hall was large dome-like building with a giant flat-screen monitor that currently displayed the time and a countdown for the Contest's commencement. There were various market stalls set up around the courtyard, each selling a different product; one sold extra Poké Ball seals and capsules, one sold refreshments, another sold Nimbasa City related souvenirs and one of the stalls even sold lucky bags! Alexa and Keenan looked around at the many visitors, tourists and locals with intrigue.

"...odd; nobody's noticed our unorthodox arrival," Alexa noted.

"That's the city for you," Hayden laughed. "Every man for himself."

"Seems a bit unusual to me, that's all," Alexa said quietly. Keenan nodded in agreement.

"We're not city folk, Alexa, so it would be," Hayden smiled.

"Hayden!" called a sunny voice. Hayden's grin grew as Hailey, Harvey and Troy all ran over to him, Lily, Alexa and Keenan. "You're a bit early, aren't you? It's not even 10am!"

"I know, Hailey; I had this conversation with my wife," Hayden replied playfully.

"It's a good thing you're early; this place is gonna be packed," Harvey presumed, looking around at the crowded market. "Colin's inside with the kids; he said something about finding the best seats for us."

"That's very kind of him," Lily smiled. "Hailey, are you feeling all right? About the Contest, I mean."

"I feel pretty good about it," Hailey said cheerfully. "Especially considering Adelina's competing as well!"

"Why would you feel good about that?" Alexa asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Because I haven't seen her compete in six years! I get giddy thinking about what she's been planning for this Contest; her displays are always so breath-taking!"

"Earth to Hailey; she's your rival, you shouldn't give her such high praise," Harvey laughed.

"I know, I know, but there's nothing significant at stake in these Contests," Hailey beamed. "It's all good fun!"

"Not a lot of people would agree," Troy chuckled. "You'd be surprised at how competitive people can get, even in the most benign of competitions."

"I know, Troy, but I know Adelina; she wouldn't do anything to ruin someone else's appeal," Hailey said faithfully. "Anyway, shall we go inside? I need to change into something more appropriate for the Contest and give Eric the usual pre-Contest pep talk."

"I can agree to that," Hayden nodded as he, Lily and Keenan followed Hailey and Harvey towards the grand Contest Hall. Troy approached Alexa.

"You doing okay?" Troy asked.

"Yes, I'm feeling a lot better," Alexa smiled. "That spa thing yesterday really helped me get some things off of my chest." Troy smiled back at Alexa.

"Glad to hear it. Feel a bit more prepared to take on Spikeball?"

"Are you going to keep calling him that?" Alexa asked crossly.

"Yep," Troy replied with a cheeky grin on his face.

"...his hair's not that spiky," Alexa mumbled quietly.

"Well, it puts Starmie to shame at any rate," Troy laughed as he began to walk towards the Contest Hall. "I'd like to see that hair completely drenched; see what it looks like!"

"It's not that different to what it normally looks like when it's dry," Alexa laughed as she began to follow her eldest cousin.

"So you've seen it soaked to the bone then?" Troy asked teasingly. However, he wasn't looking where he was going and bumped into another Trainer's Pokémon. The large rounded blue head turned to look up at Troy with its small and soulless red eyes in confusion; Troy, however, upon meeting its gaze, panicked and backed away hastily, lightly bumping into Alexa, who was already running towards him.

"Troy!" Alexa held onto the hyperventilating boy comfortingly as the Jellicent merely looked at Troy in even more confusion. That was until its attention turned to the black haired teenager approached it.

"There you are, Fancis!" he sighed with relief. "I told you not to wonder off." The boy looked at Troy and Alexa, Troy's state of shock failing to reach the boy's notice. "Sorry about that. You okay?"

"Yeah, we're fine, just move on, please," Alexa said quickly as she helped Troy to stand up properly. The boy shrugged at his Jellicent as they both moved away from Alexa's line of sight. "It's okay now, he's gone." Troy took deep breaths as he released his grip on Alexa's arms.

"R-Right...thanks..."

"Are you going to be okay?" Alexa asked worriedly. "You're still-"

"I-It's okay...thanks for being there," Troy said with shaky reassurance.

"It's a good thing I was," Alexa said gently, taking his hand in hers. She and Troy continued making their way to the Contest Hall together.

The pearl white cruise ship gradually moored at one of Castelia City's numerous piers and ground to a gentle halt. The vessel's doors opened and released the long dark grey ramp, which ended up resting neatly and securely on the pier below. Keith was the first to exit the vessel, dragging his wheeled suitcase with him, closely followed by Robbie, with Reese holding onto one of the Sawsbuck's antlers, taking care not to crush any of the small pink flowers with his paws. As other passengers started to depart from the Sea Bus, Keith checked the contents of his rucksack; the egg was sitting snugly in the glass case. He closed the rucksack and placed it on his back before climbing on Robbie's back, placing the suitcase in front of him as Robbie stood up properly. With Keith safely on his back and Reese holding on to his antlers tightly, Robbie galloped off of the pier and further into the city, passing many different types of people, some even watching the galloping Sawsbuck in awe and/or confusion.

Robbie sped his way through Join Avenue, causing many a shopper to quickly avoid getting trampled under the hooves of such a swift Pokémon. Keith and Reese tried to ignore the stares they attracted by keeping their heads fairly low. Robbie raced on, head held high; he wasn't ashamed of rushing passed total strangers. That and he had to see where he was going.

The visit to Nimbasa City was incredibly brief; Robbie pranced across the bridge and towards the city's western exit. Keith recognised the bridge Robbie crossed, being the exact same one he and Alexa were on when they collided. With the event fresh in his mind, Keith began to gather his thoughts regarding how to find Alexa and what to say to her.

Route 5 felt like a ridiculously short route at Robbie's high speed; Keith found himself travelling along the Driftveil Drawbridge in no time flat. He looked around at the sturdy iron bridge as Robbie darted across as fast as his legs could carry him.

Soon enough, Robbie's racing slowed to a gentle trot before finally returning to his walking speed as he finally entered Driftveil City. There were several different buildings, most of them residential houses, that all looked as though they were perfectly organised in terms of how they were placed; they were arranged in different lines, creating a road of sorts to let potential vehicles travel through the city without hassle. There was a Pokémon Centre near where Robbie stood idly as the Sawsbuck caught his breath, as well as a market building directly in his line of sight, but what caught Keith's attention was a large building with a big yellow star as part of its sign; the name "Driftveil Star" was engraved on the sign, along with the star in question, in bold black font that looked somewhat suave and cursive. Keith climbed off of Robbie's back, taking his suitcase with him and began to approach his destination, dragging the suitcase with him. Robbie snorted with relief as he began to follow Keith inside.

As they walked through the revolving doors, Keith and Robbie absorbed the ambiance of the hotel they just entered; several black leather sofas and armchairs were neatly placed in a decently sized area of the main lobby, with several glass coffee tables carefully positioned among them, some having updated magazines and newspapers underneath them. Hotel staff walked all around the lobby, each doing his or her own individual task, such as transporting fresh towels and bed linen to different hotel rooms or sending used towels and bedclothes to wash. Several hotel guests were in the lobby as well, some even occupying the leather seating nearby with a newspaper in hand. Keith soon made his way to the reception desk, where the receptionist looked up from her paperwork to meet his gaze; Keith noticed the tag on the receptionist's bolo tie was in the shape of a yellow star, closely resembling the star on the hotel's sign. The receptionist smiled sweetly at the potential guest.

"Hello there, may I help you?"

"Uh, yeah, I booked a room here under the name of Keith Clarke," Keith replied tensely. The receptionist began typing quickly into the computer in front of her.

"Yes, we do have a reservation under that name," the receptionist confirmed. "Single room with a double bed and en suite; is that accurate?"

"Yeah," Keith answered.

"All right then, Mr Clarke, the room is on...um...dammit..."

"What's wrong?" Keith asked worriedly.

"Sorry, I'm not used to this program yet," the receptionist replied bashfully. A black haired woman conveniently entered the room just in time to see the receptionist struggle with the computer. She sighed and approached the struggling ginger haired girl. Keith noticed that, while the black haired woman wore the exact same bolo tie as the receptionist, her uniform consisted of a slate grey suit with matching skirt, black tights and black heeled shoes.

"Is there a problem here, Rhonda?" the senior lady asked impatiently.

"Oh! I-I'm so sorry, I-I can't find the room's location on this program!" Rhonda panicked. The woman sighed as she looked at the monitor herself.

"Sixth floor, room 109," she said quietly. "Find that room's key while I finish the booking."

"Yes, Mrs Thorndyke, sorry, Mrs Thorndyke!" Rhonda apologised quickly. Keith recognised the surname all too well. The black haired woman sighed as she faced Keith directly.

"I do apologise for this-"

"Your name's Thorndyke?" Keith questioned. "You're not related to an Alexa Thorndyke, are you?" The lady's eyes widened in shock.

"Yes, she's one of my nieces. How do you know her?"

"Y-yeah, I'm...uh...i-it's complicated... M-My name's Keith; Keith Clarke."

"My name's Naomi Thorndyke and I'm the hotel manager," Naomi said on a much more friendly tone.

"I-It's nice to meet you," Keith said nervously as he handed Naomi several 20 dollar bills as payment for his hotel room. Rhonda returned with a blue slab of plastic attached to a sterling silver key and collected Keith's payment. Naomi looked at Rhonda, her green eyes looking softer than previously.

"You can take your break in five minutes, Rhonda. Afterwards, I'll find someone to talk you through the software."

"Yes, Mrs Thorndyke. Thank you," Rhonda smiled with relief and gratitude. Naomi looked at Keith again.

"Would you like me to escort you and your Pokémon to your room?" she asked. Keith didn't really need an escort, but he also didn't want to turn down a charitable offer.

"Okay, thanks," he said kindly. Naomi nodded and led Keith into the nearby elevator.

Inside the elevator, Naomi pressed the #6 button and the doors closed slowly. Once closed, the elevator began to move upwards. Robbie nearly lost his balance.

"So...you're Alexa's aunt?" Keith asked awkwardly.

"One of them," Naomi replied. "Actually, I don't see her very often."

"How come?" Keith asked curiously.

"No real reason. Don't get me wrong, I don't hate her; it's just that we've never properly interacted," Naomi said sheepishly. "Do you know if she's all right?"

"Not a clue; I haven't really seen her since-uh...I haven't seen her for a few days," Keith answered cryptically.

"I see."

"W-we're not exactly on good terms right now, though," Keith added quickly.

"I know the feeling," Naomi sighed quietly as the elevator doors opened. She led Keith and Robbie down the cream coloured corridor and passed several identical birch doors, each with a gold plated number on the door. Robbie appreciated the soft red carpet under his hooves as he walked. "So, have you stayed in a hotel before?"

"Actually, this is my first time," Keith replied. "I'm not entirely sure what to expect."

"You can expect to be treated as a guest," Naomi explained. "While you're a guest here at the Driftveil Star, my staff are willing to do anything they can to make your stay a comfortable one," she added as she unlocked the door with the number "109" on it. Keith looked away from her and sighed silently.

"Except turn back time..." Naomi snuck a quick glance of confusion at Keith before finally opening the door. She smiled kindly at him.

"There we go. The en suite's through that door," she continued, indicating a cream coloured door inside the room. "And there's a phone next to the bed; feel free to call room service if you require anything."

"Thank you," Keith said nicely. Naomi nodded.

"I hope you enjoy your stay," she said courteously as she handed Keith the hotel room key. As she walked towards the elevator again, Keith and Robbie made their way inside the room.

The room itself looked more impressive than Keith had anticipated; there was a double bed on one side of the room, with fresh red and gold bedclothes on the duvet and pillows, next to a beautifully crafted birch wood side table with an ivory white slimline telephone resting on it. A large plasma screen television sat opposite the bed, close to the en suite door, on top of a black glass television stand with a television box on one shelf and a DVD player on the lowest shelf. There was also a matching birch desk and chair near the television in the far corner of the room, with a small white porcelain pot on the table top, containing numerous complimentary sachets of sugar, coffee and teabags. Next to this pot was an ebony black electric kettle and a stainless steel mug holder that held four identical white porcelain mugs, all of which were perfectly clean and ready for use. Underneath the table was a waste bin that was completely fresh and empty. Keith closed the door behind Robbie and saw the large wardrobe behind the door, which, as he looked inside it, only contained half a dozen grey coat hangers and a plastic 'do not disturb' door hanger on the shelf above the rail. Robbie lay down on the soft red carpet and relaxed as Keith closed the wardrobe door and turned the television on. As the television activated, Keith took the remote control, removed the egg case from his rucksack and turned the television box on with the control in his hand. The television displayed a stadium of sorts with a pack of applauding spectators.

"Welcome to the Nimbasa Contest Hall for this year's Nimbasa Contest!" greeted an enthusiastic young girl with long bleach blonde pigtails. "I'm your host, Gloria, and I'm looking forward to seeing the many wonderful displays these Co-ordinators have to offer! How about you guys?!"

The crowd roared with applause, but Keith showed no interest. He was about to change the channel when he happened to see something that caught his attention; the camera had somehow panned over to some of the audience members, and Keith saw that a handful of them weren't applauding. Among them, one of them in particular caught his attention and he smiled.

"Alexa!" Robbie and Reese looked up at the television in shock and, sure enough, they saw Alexa sitting in the audience among her family; rather than applauding the overexcited host, they were laughing among themselves. Keith sighed heavily with relief. "She's still here...! Thank Arceus I haven't wasted my time..." He paid close attention to Alexa before the camera shifted back to Gloria. "If Alexa's there, one of her family members is participating. Probably."

"Bui-bui," Reese nodded.

"Maybe it's worth a watch after all," Keith smiled.

"You're all keen to see some action and the judges are eager to judge; let's get this show on the road!" Gloria declared excitedly. The audience applauded and cheered loudly, much to Daniel's frustration; he groaned as he leaned back in his seat.

"Just get on with it already," he complained quietly. "She's just wasting time."

"The Pokémon League commentators do the same thing," Alexa sighed. Keenan nodded in agreement.

Many Pokémon Co-ordinators took to the stage with their Pokémon, dressed in highly fashionable clothing. All of the Pokémon displayed their moves in uniquely elegant ways; among them were a Golduck that rode on a tidal wave that it controlled with its golden psychic energy, a Marowak who created a block of ice with Ice Beam and carved an imperfect statue of a Milotic with its skilful use of Bone Rush, a Luxray that surrounded itself with rings of thin yellow lightning bolts as it levitated itself with its combined usage of Thunder Wave and Magnet Rise, a Talonflame performing many aerial somersaults with only its wings veiled in bright orange flames and a Mienshao who demolished several rocks, which were no larger than cannon balls, and used its blinding speed to knock the debris around the arena, forming a shape that closely resembled a Flame Orb. All of the Pokémon received praise for their appeals, some gaining more than others.

Hailey stood backstage with a green eyed Swampert standing behind her, slowly running a soft brush down her light blonde hair. Hailey carried three different coloured hair ties in one hand – one was red and the other two were blue – and held a heart shaped locket in her other hand.

"Are you done yet, Joshie?" she asked. The Swampert smiled as he took a step back, admiring his Trainer's tangle-free hair.

"Swamp!" he nodded.

"Thanks, Josh," Hailey smiled as she clipped the locket around her neck. Adelina approached Hailey as she began to tie her hair in a high ponytail with the red hair tie.

"Really, Hailey, I would have thought you'd be more organised," Adelina teased.

"I am organised; if you want to look your best for a Contest, prepare yourself before your turn," Hailey explained as she securely tied her hair in place. She looked at Adelina and noticed her dress; it was a dark blue pencil dress with thick black straps around the neck area. The only thing Adelina wore on her feet were black ankle-high heeled boots. Adelina wore her usual accessories along with the questionable clothes; her gold loop earrings, her heart hair clip on her fringe and two identical pearl bracelets on either wrist. "Uh, I don't mean to be a fashion critic, but isn't that a little...skimpy for a Pokémon Contest?"

"This coming from a woman wearing a dress that looks like it's been ripped apart?" Adelina questioned, hinting the clearly different lengths between the front of Hailey's pearl pink dress and the back, which hung down to her ankles with a grape silk lining. Hailey looked at her dress in confusion before facing Adelina.

"I can see why you'd think that. To be honest, I thought that as well when I saw it in the boutique," Hailey laughed. "Hey, it's your turn next; good luck!"

"Thank you, Hailey," Adelina smiled sweetly as she passed her friend. "Not that I need it," she muttered inaudibly, bearing an extremely tiny smirk on her face.

"Coming up next is Adelina Cross from Saffron City in Kanto!" Gloria declared keenly as Adelina calmly walked onto the stage, holding a Poké Ball in one hand; the Poké Ball looked oddly coloured and had two pink and grey seals that were shaped like a four pointed star. "Adelina is another veteran Co-ordinator, so I don't doubt her performance will be a feast for the eyes!" Gloria added as she practically skipped off of the stage. Adelina expanded the Poké Ball and tossed it into the air.

"Francesca, honey! Time to shine!" she called. The Poké Ball opened, releasing a stream of white energy that sparkled all over it as it formed into the Gothitelle summoned from the Poké Ball. Francesca almost floated down to the ground delicately and landed just in time for the sparkling to end.

"Gothitelle..."

"Oh wow, that was a BEAUTIFUL entrance!" Gloria cried in awe. "And from such a beautiful Pokémon...such a perfect mix!" All three of the faraway judges nodded in unified agreement.

"Okay, honey; Psyshock," Adelina instructed calmly. Francesca held her hands together as a ring of spheres, made from red, blue and purple psychic energy, formed around her.

"Gothi...telle!" Pushing her hands up into the air sent the entire ring upwards, causing it to erupt, scattering the spheres across the entire stadium. Most of the audience members looked worried.

"Catch."

"Telle." Francesca's eyes shone bright red, causing all of the psychic spheres to halt in mid air as they were veiled in the same glow.

"Oh my gosh, that is so cool! Psyshock just...stopped! That is just amazing!" Gloria squealed with delight. The judges spoke amongst themselves before writing some notes on the desks in front of them.

"We're not finished yet. Are we, my darling?"

"Goth," Francesca nodded. She placed her hands together as they began to shine in the same red aura. The psychic spheres travelled towards the arena and formed a ring once more; the ring began to spin and compress until all of the spheres merged to form the full-sized figure of a Togekiss. The audience were at a loss for words at the marvel, including Daniel.

"Oh. My. Gosh! That is just the cutest thing I have ever seen! I really love Togekiss!" Gloria cried in ecstasy. Francesca strategically moved her hands around in front of her, controlling the movement of her Psyshock Togekiss, flying it above the audience members and making it perform various low-key somersaults, such as small barrel rolls and back flips. The red glow around the Togekiss intensified until the entire display exploded lightly, releasing many sparkles that soon fell to the ground like autumn leaves. The audience cheered wildly at the display; Adelina and Francesca bowed courteously before calmly walking away from the arena.

"Oh, man...Aunt Hailey's gonna have to compete with that," Alexa said worriedly. "That's a hard act to top."

"I'm sure Mum can handle it," Daphne said confidently. "She always has done."

"What do you mean?" Keenan asked curiously.

"Adelina's never won against Mum," Daphne explained.

"Technically, that's only in the Battle phase of the Contest," Daniel corrected. "Both Mum and Adelina advance to the Battle phase, but Mum always defeated her." Alexa and Keenan exchanged looks of suspicion.

"Speaking of Mummy, here she is!" Peggy exclaimed excitedly.

"Blu, Blu!" Piper cooed happily from the top of Peggy's head. The audience watched as Hailey made her way onto the stage, wearing a cheerful and confident smile on her face.

"They say the best is last, but will Nacrene City's Hailey Hawkstone prove the saying true?! Personally, I'm dead keen to find out! This has been a great Contest so far! Then again, I say that for every Contest I host, but I just love Pokémon Contests so much!" Gloria rambled gleefully. Daniel rolled his eyes at the over-enthusiastic teen host, but Colin kept his eyes on his wife, smiling lovingly.

"Go get 'em, Honeybee," he said quietly. Hailey expanded a Poké Ball in her hand, which had two seals depicting three pieces of blue confetti on the Ball Capsule, and threw it into the air.

"Okay, Eric, it's all you, little guy!" she called as the Poké Ball opened. The little Bellossom was released in a light burst of blue glittery confetti, which erupted from him as he was released from the Poké Ball.

"Bellossom~!" Eric sang merrily.

"Yay Eric!" Daphne applauded.

"Eric, use Petal Dance!" Hailey commanded. Eric closed his eyes softly as the two red flowers on his head shone bright pink. He began to spin around slowly, releasing many waves of shining pink petals from the glowing flowers.

"Awww, that's so cute! Using a usually fast-paced attack slowly...that's something you don't see every day!" Gloria cried joyfully. As the judges made notes regarding the display, Hailey smiled slightly more confidently.

"Okay, Time for Hidden Power!" she declared.

"Bellossom!" Eric's whole body shone in a burning red glow, causing any petals to escape his head flowers to burn in an artificial red flame.

"Oh, what?! That is so cool! The best part is those petals remain intact! Clever thinking from such a clever Co-ordinator!" Gloria praised delightfully.

"I see what she's done there!" Harvey grinned. "She's combining the beauty of a Grass type attack with the beauty of a Fire type attack while eliminating the dangers of fire!" Hayden smiled.

"Very clever indeed," he agreed. Suddenly, the glow around Eric's body intensified, as did the flames around the newly released petals, much to Eric's shock and terror; the Flower Pokémon panicked as he began to feel incredibly hot and sweaty. The audience members began to panic.

"Uh oh! What's going on?! It looks like that Hidden Power is spiralling out of control!" Gloria cried fearfully. The arena underneath Eric and Hailey's feet began to deform from the overwhelming heat of the fake flames.

"Bellossom!" Eric cried in fear; he covered his eyes and stopped spinning around, quivering in fear. Hailey panicked, which concerned her family.

"Protect!" Hailey suddenly cried. Complying immediately, Eric pulled his arms away from his eyes and crossed them together as a dome of translucent green energy formed around him. He then pushed his arms out, causing the dome to expand, which, in turn, extinguished the false fire once and for all. The petals were all blown away by the force of the expanding shield, all completely unscathed. Hailey and Eric sighed with relief, but quickly left the arena without so much as a quick bow. Concerned, Colin instantly stood up and made his way out of the main arena, heading straight for backstage. Harvey, Hayden and the rest of the family soon followed Colin.

"Uh...w-well, um...this hasn't happened before..." Gloria laughed nervously until she saw the deformed arena. "Oh, no, the arena's damaged! We'll have to make sure it's safe before the judges can decide who's advanced!"

Backstage, Hailey sat down on a bench and rested her head in her hands, sighing heavily. Eric looked up at her worriedly until Colin ran over to her.

"Hailey! What happened, are you and Eric all right?!" he asked quickly as he sat down next to her. Hailey lowered her arms and faced her husband; she looked anxious and perplexed.

"I-I don't know what happened!" she panicked. "I didn't realise anything like that could even happen!" Colin placed an arm around Hailey's shoulders and held one of her hands with his free hand.

"It's okay, you managed to recover from it quite quickly," Colin said, smiling timidly. "I'm sure everything will work out just fine!"

"I dunno, Collie...I'm really nervous about the results for the first time in over 20 years!" Harvey and Hayden were the first to arrive backstage, Lily close behind them with Troy and Alexa. Keenan and Peggy and the twins were the last to enter the room, Peggy running straight into Hailey's arms.

"Hailey, are you and Eric all right?" Harvey asked.

"Yes, we're fine, considering," Hailey replied shakily. "I-It was just a bit of a scare, that's all."

"Do you know what happened?" Hayden asked worriedly.

"N-No, I don't...this is the first time Eric's lost control over his attacks..."

"B-Bellossom!" Eric cried sadly.

"Oh, honey, I know you didn't mean to," Hailey said gently. "It was probably just one of those things..."

"What's going to happen now?" Lily asked with concern.

"First off, they'll be seeing if the arena is safe enough to use for the next phase of the Contest," Daniel replied. "Then again, no matter what the arena's fate is, I can't say I'm sure about what the results will be..."

"Oh, real nice, Daniel, way to show your mother your support," Troy complimented sarcastically. Daniel glared at his eldest cousin angrily.

"No, Troy, h-he's right. Even I'm not sure about the results..."

"I-I was just saying that Eric recovered from the whole thing rather quickly," Colin said suddenly.

"That's right, he did," Hayden smiled kindly. "I'm sure the judges will take that into consideration when they're choosing the Co-ordinators that will advance to the next round."

"Yeah, it's too soon to throw in the towel," Harvey said encouragingly. "If anything, you can at least take pride in the fact that you were able to rise above an unexpected turn of events!"

"Even if it's not enough to make you advance to the next round, we're all proud of you, Hailey," Hayden said sweetly.

"I wish I shared your sentiment," Hailey sighed. "I really do."

"I know it's knocked your self-confidence, Aunt Hailey, but you're around the one group of people who will support you no matter what happens; your family," Alexa said thoughtfully.

"She's right; it won't matter to us if you advance or not because we'll be there for you regardless," Keenan agreed wholeheartedly.

"Because we love you!" Peggy added sweetly. Hailey smiled a little as she looked into her daughter's loving lavender eyes.

"Thanks, baby," Hailey said quietly. She looked around at the rest of her family. "Thanks, everyone, I really appreciate it."

Adelina surveyed the family intervention from afar, wearing a tiny smile on her face. However, she looked up at the speaker in the room as she heard it turning on.

"Attention, Co-ordinators and viewers. Attention, Co-ordinators and viewers. Due to the damage afflicted to the stage, this Pokémon Contest is postponed indefinitely. Under the circumstances, it is with regret that the current Pokémon Contest cannot continue; therefore, I must inform everyone that the Contest will start anew once repairs are complete. That is all."

"Indefinitely postponed?!" Daphne exclaimed in disbelief.

"They can't do that, surely!" Alexa protested.

"I think, Alexa, they just did," Daniel said pessimistically.

"What does indefinitely mean?" Peggy asked. Colin sighed silently as Hailey began to panic.

"It's another word for...forever," he explained solemnly. Adelina growled under her breath and bit her lip.

 _To be continued..._


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter Fourteen – The Aftermath**

"W-well...this is the first time anything like this has happened," Gloria began, rubbing the back of her neck nervously. "But it's been decided that this Contest has been postponed and will start anew once the arena's been repaired."

"Can they even do that?" Keith asked himself quietly as he continued to watch the remainder of the Contest – or, rather, the end of the Contest – on live television. Robbie and Reese exchanged looks of mutual bemusement before returning their gaze to the teen host.

"In the meantime, I'm gonna have to say bye for now, Contest Lovers! This has been Gloria Wilding at Nimbasa Contest Hall! Ciao for now-"

Keith took the television remote in his hand and turned the television off, still mildly shocked about the mishap he witnessed. Robbie and Reese looked worriedly in his direction as he sighed.

"I wish I knew who Alexa's relative was...if one of them was even one of the Co-ordinators, anyway..."

"Saws?"

"...maybe this was a bad idea after all..."

"Bui!" Reese shook his head in protest. "Bui-bui!"

"Hm. You're right. I wish the timing was better, though," Keith smiled weakly, stroking the soft orange fur on Reese's head. "But...let's wait until tomorrow."

"Bui," Reese nodded.

"Saws," Robbie nodded in agreement.

"I-I can't believe this," Hailey panicked quietly, running her fingers through her hair. "This shouldn't be happening..!"

"Bellossom..." Eric sighed sadly.

"It'll be all right, Hailey, it's not the end of the world," Harvey said kindly. "You can always try again once the arena's back to its normal state."

"Is that really a good idea?" Adelina asked as she slowly approached the family. Alexa and Keenan glared at the incoming bronze-haired woman suspiciously, but the rest of the family watched her in confusion.

"What are you insinuating?" Hayden asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Everything was perfectly sound until Hailey and her little Hula Flower came onto the stage," Adelina explained casually. "Is it really wise to let her participate again?"

"Hey, don't you start accusing my wife of sabotage!" Colin fumed as he stood up and confronted the accusing Adelina.

"Sabotage? I've never mentioned sabotage," Adelina retorted innocently. "But I am saying Hailey was responsible for this cancellation if that's what's gotten your glasses in a twist."

"To be responsible for something means you had to have done it intentionally!" Colin argued back.

"Not necessarily," Adelina countered calmly. "In this case, being responsible means being the cause."

"I think you should get to the point before either of you stops making sense," Alexa insisted firmly. Daniel nodded in silent agreement.

"Good idea," Adelina smiled. "Look, Colin, the bottom line is your wife's daring appeal backfired, which damaged the stage and caused this postponing. Surely you understand that?" Keenan and Peggy looked around the entire dressing room and saw a few other Co-ordinators gathering around to witness Adelina's accusations, each wearing different levels of formal clothing, ranging from "casual formal" to "properly formal"; they could easily distinguish the different formality levels by glance alone.

"Surely you understand that Hailey would never jeopardise a Contest on purpose!" Colin argued angrily. "She loves Pokémon Contests as much as you do; what makes you think she would spoil a Contest deliberately?!"

"Ease up, there, mac," Harvey said calmly as he approached the conflict. "Look, Addie, pointing the finger isn't going to change the decision that's been made, so why don't you just go home and think of an appeal more inspiring than your Psychic Togekiss? I'm sure the other Co-ordinators here will be doing something similar in the time it'll take for the arena to be repaired. Hailey included, I hope," he said, smiling sweetly at his stressed sister.

"Oh, please; a Charmander will be taking up synchronised diving before Hailey will be allowed to participate in this Contest again," Adelina said rudely.

"We get it, Adelina; your chance at winning this Contest were ruined because of unpremeditated circumstances, so you blame the one Co-ordinator you think is responsible solely because their appeal backfired. That is hardly sportsman-like of you," Hayden said with frustration. "If anything, we're lucky nobody got hurt; Eric's Hidden Power may not be real fire, but it was still strong enough to hurt somebody if it wasn't quelled as soon as it was."

"Besides, our Mum and Eric worked hard on their appeal; they knew what they were doing!" Daphne said furiously.

"Indeed; they must have rehearsed at least three times a day for the past month to perfect the appeal displayed," Daniel explained. "You can't fault our mother or her Bellossom for a miscalculation nobody saw coming."

"It doesn't change the fact that Hailey's "miscalculation" ruined the Contest for everyone else," Adelina retorted, starting to lose her patience. "If she loves Contests so much, she shouldn't have caused all of this." Colin was close to completely losing his temper, though he withheld it to the best of his abilities.

"To reiterate, she-" He was interrupted mid-sentence as Hailey stood up and quickly brushed passed him as she fled the room. Everyone watched her running away with concern. "Hailey, wait!"

"I'll go after her," Harvey stated as he rushed out of the room.

"Hailey!" Hayden called as he ran alongside his older brother. Not knowing who to turn to, Peggy approached her father and held onto him; Colin placed an arm around his youngest daughter as he glared at Adelina.

"You-"

"What gave you the right to say such a thing?!" Lily suddenly questioned furiously as she stormed over to Adelina. "Hailey feels bad enough about what happened, did you really have to crush her spirit even further?!" Alexa and Keenan watched their mother with wide eyes; it was rare to see Lily so furious with anyone about anything.

"They say the truth hurts, Lily," Adelina said nonchalantly. "And Hailey's just coming to terms with it."

"If you were really her friend, you'd be supporting Hailey, not belittling her over something she couldn't control!" Lily snapped.

"Unless you're not really Hailey's friend after all?" Colin questioned accusingly.

"Of course I'm Hailey's friend," Adelina began. Alexa glared at Adelina and Keenan shook his head at her. "But I want her to accept the responsibility for what she's done."

"With all due respect," one of the bystanders began. "She didn't do anything."

"Shut up, Kirk," Adelina hissed under her breath as the black haired man stepped forward a little. Daphne admired his tuxedo a little, but thought it was over the top for a Pokémon Contest at the same time.

"No, I'm serious; I saw that appeal and it looked fine until the Hidden Power suddenly intensified." Alexa listened intently to the witness's testimony and began to process his words in her mind.

"What do you know about fire anyway? Your speciality is making mediocre sculptures out of ice with a bone," Adelina said nastily.

"Look, I'm as frustrated about this as you are, but accidents happen," Kirk said reasonably. "No point in playing the blame game."

"Who said I was playing a game?" Adelina huffed.

"Oh, get off your high Ponyta, Adelina; you don't speak for all of us," snapped a young woman in a tasteful skirt and blouse combo.

"Hi, Vera," Colin greeted politely, his anger momentarily subsiding.

"Hi, Colin," Vera smiled.

"So, what do you think about this postponing? Do you hold Hailey responsible?" Adelina asked, almost interrogatively. Daniel rolled his eyes, annoyed with Adelina's repetition.

"Nobody's responsible; it was just an accident," Vera said nicely. "Besides, it's like the tall guy said; we can use this opportunity to further rehearse our Pokémon's appeals or even plan something entirely new! Oooh, maybe I can let my Ambipom appeal next time..."

"Why, are you scared that your Mienshao's Rock Slide Flame Orb resembled a Fire Stone in the judges' eyes?"

"Oh, stop being so mean spirited, Adelina!" Lily scolded. Daphne gently took Peggy from her father's shirt and left the room with her and Daniel in search of their mother. Eric looked down at the tiled floor in shame.

"I can't help it if I'm excited about the possibilities," Vera shrugged.

Hailey sat alone in a virtually empty room; it almost resembled another dressing room, but there were no lockers to be found along the walls. Instead, Hailey sat on one of the plush green sofas in front of the glass top coffee table, old magazines stacked underneath in a highly messy order. The room looked largely unused, as traces of dust were on the top of the coffee table and photo frames that hung the walls; the frames each held a stunning photograph of a different Pokémon in its natural habitat, such as Sawsbuck, Pikachu, Tauros and Miltank, Butterfree and Cottonee. However, none of the photographs, however beautiful they looked, managed to lift Hailey's spirits. The door opened quietly as Harvey and Hayden entered the room, spotting Hailey on the sofa.

"Hailey?"

"Hm?" Hailey looked up at Harvey in brief confusion. "Oh. Hi."

"Are you really going to let Addie get you down?" Harvey asked as he closed the door behind Hayden.

"But what if she's right?" Hailey sighed. "What if it is my fault?"

"Oh, don't tell me she's shaken my bubbly baby sister," Harvey said, almost jokingly.

"Stop it, Harvey...I'm not in the mood."

"Hailey, seriously, we're worried about you," Hayden said as he sat down next to her. "This isn't like you; you've never been this depressed over faulty appeals before."

"Yeah, remember when Dexter tried to appeal with a Zap Cannon/Thundershock combo?" Harvey asked as he sat next to Hailey. "I mean, good thing Jolteon have Volt Absorb!"

"That one wasn't a big deal in the end; the judges thought we were taking advantage of Dexter's ability. But this one's different; Eric and I rehearsed that appeal all month! How could I let it go so wrong?"

"It was out of your hands, Hailey; it was lucky you reacted so quickly!"

"Hayden's right, sis, there's no point in blaming yourself; you can use this time to work on it some more," Harvey said cheerfully.

"Is it worth it, though? I mean, what if Eric and I keep rehearsing the appeal and it backfires again? I don't think I could take that chance..."

"Okay, if you don't want the Petal Dance/Hidden Power combo again, maybe Flint can cook something up," Hayden suggested. "The fact that he's a Volcarona alone would earn you some high praise from the judges, I would imagine; Volcarona isn't a Pokémon people expect to see in Contests."

"Yeah, they're all laughing at the other Bug types in the Pokémon Battling scene," Harvey grinned.

"Thanks for trying, guys, but it doesn't change what Adelina said..."

"Hailey, she's just sour because she didn't get to see if her Psychic Togekiss earned her a spot in the next round," Harvey said reassuringly. "I mean, come on...utilising Psychic to manipulate matter? How long did it take her to come up with that?! I mean, Dakota can do that in her sleep!"

"I think what Harvey's trying to say is that it doesn't matter what Adelina thinks; all that matters is what you think," Hayden smiled sweetly.

"...you know what I'm thinking now? I think Adelina's right..." Harvey and Hayden exchanged worried glances. "...and I won't re-enter the Contest either..."

"What?!" Harvey and Hayden faced Hailey with horror.

"You can't give up after one mishap!" Harvey exclaimed.

"If you fall off the Ponyta, you've got to get back on! I thought that was your attitude to losing any sort of contest!" Hayden said in disbelief.

"It was...but that was before I caused this failure..."

"You can't think like that," Harvey said with concern.

"Just did," Hailey said quickly. The door opened quietly as Daniel and his sisters looked inside the room.

"Oh, there you are!" Hailey looked up as she heard Daphne's cheery voice. The dormant tears in Hailey's eyes hadn't escaped Peggy's notice.

"Daniel! Girls! What's the matter?" she asked in shock.

"You, silly," Harvey smiled.

"We got worried when you didn't come back right away, so we went looking for you," Daphne explained with concern, entering the room with her brother and sister.

"Dad's still arguing with Adelina, but two other Co-ordinators joined the dispute just before we left," Daniel added calmly.

"They don't blame you, Mummy," Peggy said as she approached Hailey. "So you shouldn't blame you either."

"But it was my appeal that ended up causing the whole Contest to be postponed; how can I not blame myself?" Hailey asked rhetorically.

"You didn't intend for any of this to happen," Daniel said rationally. "It's like what one of the Co-ordinators said; accidents happen. In this case, it was an accident to which there is nobody to blame; it was an unpredicted circumstance, as Uncle Hayden said."

"Yeah, and you handled it pretty well considering it was something you never saw coming!" Daphne beamed. "How did you know Protect would work?"

"I didn't, sweetie," Hailey replied, losing what little smile she had left. "It was a shot in the dark."

"It worked all the same, though, so you can be glad about that!" Daphne winked.

"See, Hailey? If your son and daughters know you're not at fault, why should you think you are?" Harvey asked nicely. Hailey looked into Peggy's worried eyes and smiled a little.

"Now I don't know what to think..."

"Don't blame yourself. Please?" Peggy asked sweetly. Hailey's smile intensified a little as she held Peggy closer to her, allowing the little girl to cuddle her mother.

"I'll try not to. Thanks, everyone." Daniel sighed silently with relief as Peggy and Daphne smiled with delight. Harvey and Hayden were torn between satisfaction about Hailey cheering up and anguish regarding the fate of her self-confidence.

The entire family were the literal last people to leave the Nimbasa Contest Hall; the market stalls in the courtyard had since been packed up and removed, leaving only small amounts of litter lying around. Harvey, Hayden and Colin walked in front of Lily, Hailey, Troy, Alexa, Keenan, Peggy and the twins.

"What are your plans now, Colin?" Harvey asked.

"I dunno; lunch, I suppose," Colin shrugged. "Are you sure you don't want to join us?"

"I think we'd be getting in the way," Harvey said sheepishly. "What do you think, Hayden?"

"I'm going to agree with Harvey on this one; besides, I still have another matter to attend to tomorrow."

"Alexa's hospital visit?" Harvey asked. Hayden nodded.

"And, Harvey, don't you have to sort out the alimony issue?" Colin asked carefully.

"I'll try and give Naomi a call later today and ask her about why she wants it to stop," Harvey said half-heartedly.

"Penny for your thoughts, Alexa?" Daniel questioned as he observed how deep in thought Alexa looked.

"For starters, all this thinking's giving me a headache," she replied.

"Then stop thinking," Daniel said simply.

"Way to be as blunt as a spoon, Daniel," Troy sighed.

"Sorry...there's so much on my mind, it's hard not to think," Alexa said worriedly.

"We all have a lot on our minds after today, Lexie," Lily said kindly. "We just have to take it steadily, one thing at a time."

"Yeah, don't start thinking up a brain storm when you're recovering from a head injury," Troy smiled teasingly.

"Thanks for the reminder," Alexa jeered. Daniel rolled his eyes at Troy's remark. "Are you going to be okay, Aunt Hailey?"

"I don't know, sweet pea," Hailey sighed. "Part of me still thinks I'm responsible for ruining the Contest, but part of me wants to think it was an accident; I just don't know what to think."

"Maybe you need to sleep on it," Troy suggested.

"We're only just creeping into the afternoon; it's far too soon to consider sleeping," Daniel stated in frustration.

"Hey, it was just an idea, okay?!" Troy snapped quietly.

"I dunno if that'll work, though...sleep's more for recharging your batteries, if you will; you don't tend to think when you're sleeping," Daphne pondered.

"My sentiments exactly," Daniel nodded. "But personally speaking, Mum, I don't think you have anything to worry about as far as the Contest goes."

"I don't either," Peggy agreed. "Don't let Miss what's-her-name bully you into blaming yourself!"

"You really don't remember Adelina, do you, sweetie-pie?" Hailey chuckled. She looked in front of her and saw Harvey, Hayden and Colin standing perfectly still near the end of the passage leading into where the market used to be. "Think we should pick up the pace?"

"The day's young, Hailey, there's no hurry," Lily smiled. "If you're up for it later, we can do something else later, like go swimming." Troy appeared anxious about the idea.

"Thanks, but no thanks, Lily. I'd rather have lunch and get home."

Harvey, Hayden and Colin drew their attention to Hailey and Lily and started to approach them. Daniel took his glasses off of his face and used the bottom of his saffron t-shirt to clean the lenses.

"What's the next plan of action, Honeybee?" Colin asked his deflated wife worriedly.

"Lunch and home if you and the kids are game," Hailey replied almost half-heartedly.

"I'm okay with that; I can use the extra time at home to finish my homework for General Studies," Daphne said casually.

"Sounds all right by me," Daniel said simply, returning his glasses to their original position over his eyes. Peggy nodded in corroboration with her brother.

"That's fine by me, hun," Colin smiled kindly. "We can go to the restaurant in this city; it's not too far from here."

"We've been there before, Dad," Daniel noted.

"Your point?" Colin asked.

"Sounds like a plan. Hayden, Harvey, what are you going to do?"

"I'm going to head back to Samphire Island," Harvey replied. "I have a call to make."

"Naomi?" Hailey asked.

"Yup."

"What about you, Hayden?" Hailey asked.

"I'm not entirely sure," Hayden replied. Keenan blinked in confusion; he knew Hayden had something planned, but couldn't understand why he lied about it. "I'll discuss it with Lily and the kids once we part ways."

"Okay. I-I'll call you tonight, okay?"

"Sure thing, Hailey," Hayden smiled. "If Harvey's up to it, we can have a three-way."

"Hey, that sounds like fun! Count me in!" Harvey grinned. "Hey, Troy, what are you going to do now?"

"Um...just wonder around, I guess," Troy replied timidly.

"I guess seeing that Jellicent in the Contest rattled you, huh?" Harvey guessed sadly.

"Y-yeah... A-Actually, I'm gonna head for Driftveil, pay Mum a visit...u-unless that's-"

"Mate, it doesn't bother me; if you want to see your mother, there's no way I'll stop you," Harvey said supportingly, placing a hand on Troy's shoulder. "You can make your own decisions without worrying what I think or feel. That being said, I am glad you're still in contact with her despite everything."

"Thanks, Dad," Troy smiled. "If it's all right with everyone, I'm gonna shoot off right now before she gets too busy."

"Run like the wind, buddy!" Harvey laughed as Troy raced towards the city's western exit, waving back at his father. Everyone watched Troy speeding out of the city, Alexa and Daphne waving him farewell as they watched.

"And I think we should get to the restaurant before it gets too crowded," Colin suggested. Hailey smiled a little.

"Good idea," she agreed. "Let's go, kids!"

"Bye, everyone," Peggy said politely as Colin gently took her hand and walked alongside him. As the twins followed their parents, Harvey started to make his leave, walking in the direction of Lostlorn Forest. Hayden approached Lily, Alexa and Keenan.

"What are we going to do, Hayden?" Lily asked curiously.

"Back to the hotel for the time being?" Hayden proposed.

"Okay," Lily nodded.

"Are we going there via Join Avenue or the same way we came?" Alexa asked.

"Via Join Avenue; I have something I want to share with all of you and I have a craving for a sandwich," Hayden replied. Alexa smiled as a small idea instantly came to her mind.

"They don't do sandwiches in Join Avenue, do they?" Keenan asked.

"There's a Sandwich Bar there that makes sandwiches to your liking; you basically choose what bread you have and what goes in it," Alexa explained. "Toasted is the best," she added with delight.

"Okay, now you've got me curious," Lily chuckled. "Shall we go?" Hayden nodded and escorted Lily, Alexa and Keenan through to Join Avenue.

Join Avenue was as lively as expected; while many people were merely passing through between Route 4 and Nimbasa City, there were plenty of patrons at almost every stall in the avenue, though some were busier than others – in fact, the Dojo didn't have any customers at all! Oddly, despite the hustle and bustle of the avenue, the only voices that could be heard were between shoppers and shop owners.

"So, what is it you want to share with us, Hayden?" Lily asked as she walked alongside her husband. Alexa randomly wandered away from her parents, over to a quiet little stand selling all sorts of different charms and other bric-a-brac.

"I was thinking...if you're all okay with it, we should spend a little more time in Unova," Hayden proposed.

"Because of Aunt Hailey?" Keenan guessed. "I was wondering what you were hiding."

"I didn't mean to lie and I'm sorry; I just didn't want Hailey to assume I'm going out of my way to support her," Hayden explained, looking as worried as he felt. "You know what she's like; she doesn't like anyone making a fuss over her. Outside of her occasional spa treatments, at least."

"So you're saying we'll be staying at Castelite for a little while longer?" Keenan presumed.

"Only if you're okay with it, kiddo," Hayden replied, very lightly ruffling the boy's hair. "Alexa, what do you think?"

"Alexa?" Lily looked at where she thought Alexa was, only to find her absent from the group. Hayden, Lily and Keenan looked around in confusion, but soon found Alexa approaching them with a small white plastic bag in one hand.

"There you are," Hayden laughed.

"Sorry about that, had to make an impulse buy. What'd I miss?" Alexa asked curiously.

"Dad asked if we'd be okay staying in Unova for a bit longer to support Aunt Hailey," Keenan explained.

"Yeah, she's taken a knock to her self-esteem," Alexa said with concern.

"She even said she wasn't planning to participate in the renewed Nimbasa Contest," Hayden said truthfully.

"No? Hailey missing out on a Contest?!"

"Harvey and I found that hard to believe, that's for sure," Hayden said to Lily. "That's why I was thinking of prolonging our stay in Castelite. But, like I said, only if you're okay with it." Alexa lowered her head in thought.

"I'm not sure if I'd need to let Rhythmi know about the extension, but...hmmm..." She eventually looked up at her father with a kind smile and a single nod. "Yep, I'm okay with it."

"You're sure?"

"Yep, I'm sure, Dad; as much as I want to talk things through with Keith, I'm worried about Aunt Hailey even more at this point in time. Keith's going to have to wait; at the end of the day, family's the most important thing anyone can have."

"I couldn't agree more, Lexie," Lily said nicely. "So I suppose this means we're staying for a little longer then?"

"Yep," Keenan and Alexa replied harmoniously. Hayden smiled warmly.

"Thanks, everyone. Say, Lexie, what was your impulse buy anyway? If you don't mind my asking."

"It's nothing critically important," Alexa replied as she dug out the contents of her tiny carrier bag; taking care to prevent her Xtransceiver from damaging the carrier bag, she pulled out a dull cyan bow attached to a short brown necklace cord. The silver bell that hung from the bow jingled with the very slightest movement of Alexa's hand.

"A Soothe Bell?" Lily questioned. "Is something wrong with Jollie's?"

"No, her Soothe Bell's fine. It's not for me anyway; it's for Keith." Keith suddenly gleamed with realisation.

"Oh right! For his new Pokémon!"

"Oh, of course! His new Pokémon has the same evolution criteria Jollie does!" Lily added.

"Well, once he or she hatches," Alexa added bashfully. "I just hope he won't think I'm trying to buy any sort of apology from him with this..."

"I don't see why he should," Lily said kindly. "But I think it will show that you still care about him."

"I-I do...I-I think..."

"Cross that bridge when you get to it, sweetheart," Hayden said gently, steadying her shivering hand. "But that's a very nice idea, and I'm sure – in spite of the troubles the pair of you are going through – that he'll appreciate the gesture."

"I hope so. If he doesn't, I'm sure Isabelle would like it."

"And if she doesn't?" Keenan asked cheekily.

"Then I have absolutely no idea," Alexa replied sheepishly. "So, what are we doing now?"

"Getting lunch, that's what," Hayden laughed as he, Lily, Keenan and Alexa began walking further down the avenue. Alexa and Keenan trailed slightly behind on purpose.

"What else is on your mind?" Keenan asked as Alexa returned the Soothe Bell to its carrier bag.

"There was something about that mishap that didn't feel right to me," Alexa admitted quietly. "I was listening to what that one Co-ordinator said about Eric's Hidden Power; he said it suddenly intensified..."

"And?"

"An attack doesn't simply intensify mid-use unless a Pokémon was putting more energy and force into it," Alexa explained. "Eric wasn't trying to put more energy into it and you saw his reaction when it did intensify; he was scared for his life."

"Give him a break, he's weak against his own Hidden Power type," Keenan said casually.

"So's Stephan, but that's not the point. I genuinely think Hailey's not to blame for any of this Contest Cancellation malarkey."

"So what are you thinking?" Keenan asked in a low whisper.

"I don't quite know how Eric's Hidden Power intensified, but I have a shaking suspicion we both know who might..."

Keith placed his now empty suitcase in the wardrobe and closed the door gently before walking over to the desk near the television, where the kettle was on and boiling the water inside. Keith poured some of the freshly boiled water into one of the six white mugs, drowning the teabag inside. The yellow and black egg that sat on the plush duvet began to shine in an intense white glow, startling the formerly asleep Sawsbuck and Buizel. Keith, noticing the glow, returned the kettle to its stand and raced to his egg as Robbie and Reese approached it.

"What the hell?!" Keith took the glowing egg in both hands as its intensity faded slightly. To his complete astonishment, he felt the egg beginning to morph; the traditional rounded egg shape soon grew a pair of small arms, a pair of tiny feet, a small squared tail, a round head and two rhombus-shaped ears. The white glow faded, revealing the baby's true colours; it was dominantly yellow with two big pink cheek pouches, a black spike pattern around its collar, black tipped ears and a small yellow pattern across the end of its tail. The little Pokémon opened its ruby red eyes and looked straight at Keith, who, having witnessed his first Pokémon hatching, was smiling warmly.

"...Pichu...?"

 _To be continued..._


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter Fifteen – Ava**

"H-Hi there," Keith said nervously to the confused little baby Pokémon. The Pichu stared at him blankly and blinked. "Uh...Reese..? A little help?"

"Bui!" Reese complied as he walked over to the bewildered baby, smiling kindly at the newborn. "Bui-bui," he greeted gently. Pichu's attention was drawn to the Buizel next to Keith.

"Pichu?" Pichu's voice was high in pitch, but soft and feminine at the same time; there was no doubt in Keith's mind his new Pichu was a female.

"Huh; never had a girl Pokémon before," Keith said quietly. Pichu looked up at Keith again, still carrying the same look of confusion on her face. "Heh; for a Pichu, you're pretty cute," he smiled as he very delicately touched Pichu's tiny black nose with his finger.

"Pi?! CHU!" Startled, Pichu quickly and briefly released a small discharge of electricity that was barely strong enough to shock Keith. "Pichu!" Terrified, Pichu slipped out of Keith's hands and raced under the bed. Robbie and Reese looked at Keith nervously as he tried to recover from the sudden shock.

"...didn't see that one coming..."

"Bui-bui," Reese sighed.

"Shut up and make sure she's okay, will you?" Keith asked resentfully. Reese shrugged and jumped off of the bed and followed the whimpering under the bed. Keith tidied his electrified hair quickly as he carefully stood up from the bed.

"PICHU!" Pichu's petrified yelp followed by Reese's pain-filled cry gave Keith cause for alarm. Reese crawled out from under the bed, tail first, carrying the dizzy Pichu in his arms. Keith picked her up and looked at her worriedly. "Pi...chu..."

"I think she needs a Pokémon Centre," Keith said quietly. "Reese, do you need to go?"

"Bui," Reese shook his head.

"I think you should go anyway; Water types are weak to Electric attacks," Keith stated. "I know she's a baby, but it doesn't hurt to be safe, right?"

"Bui-bui," Reese shrugged casually.

"Okay. Robbie, will you be all right here on your own? We don't all need to go." Robbie smiled at Keith.

"Sawsbuck!" he nodded.

"Okay, good. We'll be back as soon as we can," Keith said hurriedly as he left the room hastily, Reese struggling to climb up Keith's leg throughout. Keith soon left the room and locked the door behind him; with Keith gone, Robbie lay on the floor in front of the bed and sighed contentedly as his nap commenced.

Keith ran out of the lift, but soon stopped dead in his tracks when he saw someone familiar to him speaking to another familiar face; Naomi stood in front of the reception desk, a few feet away from a patron checking out of the hotel, talking with Troy. However, Troy almost immediately spotted Keith through the corner of his vision and saw red.

"You?! What are you doing here?!"

"He's a guest at the hotel," Naomi explained. "What's the matter? Do you know each other?" she asked curiously as Keith slowly approached her.

"Kind of..."

"Kind of?! You landed Alexa in hospital!" Troy yelled angrily. Naomi was surprised, but not in a nice way.

"Keith, is that true?!"

"Yes, but it was an accident! I tripped over his Watchog!" Keith exclaimed defensively. "I dunno what Alexa was doing, but I crashed into her afterwards! I-I didn't mean to hurt her! ...i-is she all right?"

"Oh, now you care about her!" Troy groaned sarcastically, rolling his eyes. "Where was that when you killed her self-esteem!?"

"Bui..!" Reese suddenly shivered, small traces of static electricity crackling around his body. The static hadn't escaped Keith's notice.

"I gotta go!" he yelled quickly as he raced out of the hotel. Naomi watched in confusion, but Troy immediately raised his left arm, still seething with repressed anger as he searched his Xtransceiver's contact list.

"I think his egg hatched into the Pichu in his arms," Naomi observed.

"I don't care if that egg hatched into a golden Vulpix," Troy grumbled as he began to contact another Xtransceiver.

Alexa's Xtransceiver began to play a calming jazz melody as she, Hayden, Lily and Keenan arrived in Castelia City. Everyone stopped and drew their attention to Alexa's ringing Xtransceiver as she raised her right arm.

"It's Troy!"

"I hope everything's all right," Lily said worriedly as Alexa accepted the incoming call. Troy's face appeared on the screen in place of the call notification and the jazz tune ended abruptly.

"Troy, what's wrong?" Alexa asked, noticing how completely disgruntled he looked.

"Sorry to be the one to tell you this, but we just saw Keith," Troy said grumpily.

"What?!" Alexa practically screamed in horror. Hayden sighed as he slapped his hand over his eyes in disbelief, Keenan instantly folded his arms in disgust and Lily merely grew more concerned.

"I told him to wait..." Hayden grumbled to himself.

"What's he doing here?!" Alexa cried.

"Hell if I know," Troy replied simply. "He bolted out of here before he could say anything about it."

"Where's here, Troy?" Lily asked calmly.

"Driftveil Star Hotel," Troy replied, Naomi's face creeping nervously on the screen just over Troy's shoulder.

"Troy said something about the hospital; are you feeling all right, Alexa?" Naomi asked with concern.

"Physically speaking, I'm feeling better. Thanks for asking," Alexa said nicely. "But I guess Keith got bored of waiting for my return..."

"I wouldn't put it past him."

"Say, Troy, did you see an egg when you saw Keith? A yellow and black one?" Lily asked curiously.

"What does that have to do with anything?" Hayden questioned as he finally lowered his hand from his face.

"It might have hatched by now," Lily replied kindly.

"I ask again; what does that have to do with anything?" Hayden asked in frustration.

"I didn't see an egg; just a giddy Pichu and a paralysed Buizel," Troy replied casually.

"I thought it was a Pichu egg," Lily said optimistically.

"That doesn't matter right now!" Hayden complained. "Troy, do you know where be "bolted off" to?"

"Probably to the city's Pokémon Centre; like I said, his Buizel's paralysed. Probably from startling the Pichu," Troy huffed. "Why, are you worried he'll start stalking you?"

"This isn't funny, Troy!" Alexa exclaimed.

"If he's smart, he'll avoid Dad at the very least," Keenan said nastily. Alexa glanced at her infuriated brother briefly before facing Troy on her Xtransceiver.

"Well, uh...um..." Alexa had no words for the news she'd just heard.

"Thanks for the warning, Troy; I'll keep an eye out while I'm taking Alexa to the hospital tomorrow," Hayden said appreciatively.

"No problem, Uncle Hayden. Have a good day," Troy smiled as he ceased the communication between his Xtransceiver and Alexa's. Alexa hung up the call and sighed, burying her face in both of her hands, worrying Hayden and Lily.

"This is all I need; my relationship problems clashing with familial troubles! Urgh...! Why did Keith have to be here now..?!"

"It's going to be all right, Alexa, we can get around this," Hayden said sweetly as he gently took hold of Alexa's hands. "Try not to worry about it."

"I don't think that's possible anymore," Alexa replied shakily as she felt her arms being softly pulled away from her face.

"Let's just get back to the hotel for now, sweetheart; you can sit down and maybe get some rest before your appointment tomorrow," Lily said lovingly. Alexa heaved a big sigh and nodded compliantly as she walked alongside her parents towards their hotel. Keenan walked next to Lily and looked conflicted; he was utterly resentful after hearing Keith defying Hayden's simple request, yet he didn't feel right bearing such resentment, as he was Keith's friend little over a month ago. He wasn't sure what he should be feeling.

Keith stood in front of the mahogany desk in the Pokémon Centre, where a red-haired nurse was waiting to return Reese and Pichu, both fully healed and energised, to him. The Pokémon Centre lobby was extremely quiet; most of the centre's visitors were either in the nearby indoor Poké Mart or in a different area of the centre, such as the canteen or dormitories. Keith appreciated how quiet the lobby was as he held the now placid Pichu in his arms.

"Newborn Pichus can be a handful," the nurse began with a small giggle. "They can't store much electricity yet and shock themselves when they discharge it."

"Yeah, no kidding," Keith laughed nervously.

"Well, just try to be more careful with her from now on, okay? She's extremely timid," the nurse cautioned. "But if your Buizel gets paralysed again, you can give him a Cheri Berry or a Lum Berry to cure it if you can't get to a Pokémon Centre."

"I'll remember that; thanks, Nurse," Keith said gratefully.

"You're welcome," the nurse smiled sweetly. "You have a nice day now," she added as she headed for an office just behind the front desk. Keith allowed Reese to climb onto his shoulder before he started making his way out of the Pokémon Centre, only to nearly bump into Troy; when he met Keith's anxious gaze, Troy saw red once again.

"I thought you'd have left by now," Troy said, trying to contain his anger. "The Centre, I mean, but I kinda wish you left Unova too." Keith looked at Troy nervously, but he also felt a different emotion as he looked into his adversary's emerald eyes.

"I only just arrived this morning!" Keith said firmly. "Let me explain; I was-"

"I don't care, mate. What I do care about, though, is Alexa," Troy said abruptly. Keith glared at him.

"So why aren't you with her now?" he asked interrogatively.

"I'm not going to go out of my way to be in her presence 24 hours a day! She'll call me when and if she needs me or just wants to hang out," Troy explained, as calmly as he could. "Besides, it's best if she stays with her family for now; y'know, in light of a certain spiky-haired Bouffalant having rammed his afro on her forehead earlier this week."

"That was an accident!" Keith yelled defensively, putting Pichu down on the ground. Pichu immediately hid behind Keith's trouser leg. "I didn't mean to hurt her! That's why I'm here; I want to make things right!"

"Are you sure you're not here to make things worse?" Troy asked rudely. "You were told to wait for her recovery, right? So, why are you here when we don't know if Alexa's recovered or not?"

"Because I'm on leave of absence; I had the opportunity to get a head-start in trying to solve my problems with Alexa! But I can see she's already moved on, so what's even the point?"

"What?" Troy looked at Keith quizzically. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"Oh, don't put ketchup on my ice cream and tell me it's strawberry syrup! I'm talking about you!" Keith shouted accusingly.

"You've lost me. What is it you think I've done?"

"I don't know, but you must have done something to win Alexa's heart!" Keith replied, envy written all over his face.

"Eh?"

"You're her new boyfriend, aren't you?!" Keith shouted furiously.

"Wow...that shows how much you trust Alexa," Troy said, laughing nervously.

"Just tell me!" Keith insisted angrily. "Am I right or wrong?!"

"All right, I will; you're completely wrong, pal! I'm Alexa's eldest cousin!" Keith's eyes widened with shock at the revelation.

"Her cousin?!"

"Yeah, my Dad is her Dad's older brother," Troy explained calmly.

"...I didn't know Hayden had a brother," Keith said quietly.

"I don't suppose you asked who the tall guy standing next to him at the hospital was, did you?" Troy asked teasingly.

"That was your Dad?"

"Yep," Troy nodded. Keith sighed as he ran his fingers through his hair.

"I-I'm...I'm sorry...I wasn't thinking..."

"I could tell. What are you doing here prematurely anyway?" Troy asked curiously.

"I didn't know I was premature; I took a Sea Bus from Almia, which took three days to get here," Keith explained. "Like I said, I was given a leave of absence and I took the opportunity to make my way to Unova in hopes of arriving before Alexa left."

"Why didn't you just try calling her? Or wasn't she picking up?" Troy asked.

"I can't get through to her cell and I don't have her email address," Keith sighed. "Look, I'm sorry if my being here isn't making anything better, but I need to sort things out with Alexa."

"I agree; all this bad blood between you is really bugging her," Troy said, starting to pity Keith. "But if you want my opinion, now isn't a good time to talk to her about it, especially since I ratted you out to her." Keith sighed quietly.

"Can't say I blame you; you're just looking out for her."

"Hey, we Thorndykes are a close family; we look out for one another. Besides, I was mad at you when I spilled the beans."

"Still don't blame you. So...do you know where Alexa is right now?"

"I'm not answering that; we've all had a rough day, which has been really hard on my Dad, Hayden and Hailey in particular, so it's a bad idea to waltz in and try making amends this soon."

"Hang on, who's Hailey? I heard that name from Alexa's Grandpa, but..."

"Oh, Hailey is Hayden's little sister," Troy explained. "She was in the Nimbasa Contest this morning and-"

"You mean Hailey Hawkstone?" Keith asked suddenly.

"Oh, you saw that? Good, I don't have to explain it. Look, if you must speak to Alexa, at least wait until tomorrow; everyone will have slept some of their worries away and Hayden will be in a better mood. Probably."

"Probably?" Keith asked cautiously.

"Depending on what the doctor says about Alexa tomorrow," Troy replied quickly.

"...why are you doing this? A few minutes ago, you were ready to squeeze my jugular," Keith said in bemusement.

"Because I've seen how this bad blood is distressing Alexa and I, personally, want to see her happy again. Hayden does as well, but, just to warn you, he's put Alexa above you."

"She's his daughter; of course he would," Keith said timidly. "I-I should get going; I left my Sawsbuck alone in my hotel room."

"Don't worry, my Mum allows Pokémon to be alone in hotel rooms," Troy smiled.

"What?"

"Since she knew your name, I assume you met her? The lady I was talking to? She's my mother," Troy explained.

"Oh, right," Keith smiled nervously. "Geez, I know who your Mom is, but I don't even know your name."

"It's Troy," Troy said politely. The two boys smiled at one another, but Keith soon bent down to pick Pichu up back in his arms.

"Keith," he said quickly as he stood up properly. "Now I really should be going."

"Okay, bye," Troy said quickly.

"See ya," Keith replied promptly. Troy watched Keith exiting the Pokémon Centre before walking over to the front desk and striking a conversation with the same red-haired nurse who helped Keith.

Hayden was the first to enter the hotel room and immediately sat down on the sofa, sighing as he sat. Lily sat next to him while Alexa closed the door behind her and Keenan, who began to wander aimlessly around the room. Iara followed his every step in confusion and worry.

"We've only just crept into the afternoon and it's already been a bad day," Hayden moaned as he ran his hand through his hair.

"We can get through it, like you said," Lily said positively.

"I'm not disputing what I said outside; I was making an observation," Hayden said as he started to watch Keenan's pacing. "If you keep doing that, you'll wear a hole in the floor."

"Sorry, I'm just conflicted," Keenan sighed as he finally stopped pacing. As she wasn't looking where she was going, Iara bumped her head on Keenan's calf.

"About what, sweetie?" Lily asked.

"He doesn't like Keith being here despite what Dad told him, but he can't quite bring himself to resent Keith," Alexa explained. "Ryder had a similar conflict."

"It's just...we were friends not that long ago; I don't know what to feel about any of this, it's so confusing," Keenan moaned.

"I know the feeling; I want to like him, but I really don't like what he's done," Hayden said empathetically. "It's hard to not hate a person when you hate what they've done..." Keenan nodded in agreement.

"It'll be okay in the end," Alexa said with wavering optimism. "You'll figure out how you feel about the whole thing eventually; just let it sink in first, we've only heard about the problem ten minutes ago."

"Yeah, you're right," Keenan sighed. "I just wish he hadn't said whatever it was that really hurt your feelings..." Alexa felt anxious; she wished she had a little more confidence to fully explain what happened between her and Keith that drove a wedge in their relationship.

"So...what's going to happen now, Hayden?" Lily asked with mild apprehension.

"For starters, I'll be taking Alexa to the hospital tomorrow morning," Hayden began, feeling calmer than previously. "I'll need to arrange my meeting with Gulliver, since we're yet to establish a time and place, but helping Hailey cope with what happened today is far more important than that in my opinion."

"I thought your meeting with Gulliver was sometime next week?" Lily questioned.

"It is, but, like I said, we have no time or place yet," Hayden said sheepishly.

"What about Keith?" Keenan asked worriedly.

"That's for me to deal with; he's my problem, after all, and I'm why he's here in Unova," Alexa said firmly. "He's my problem, you don't need to worry about him."

"I concur," Hayden agreed. "But I'll be there if you need anything."

"But you'll be busy with Aunt Hailey," Alexa said shyly. "I can handle Keith after half a dozen servings of hot cocoa."

"Even so, I want you to know that you have my full support," Hayden smiled lovingly. "That's not going to change anytime soon."

"You have my full support as well, honey," Lily said tenderly. "I know this rift between you and Keith is for the two of you to fix, but try not to feel isolated; you're not alone in this."

"You've always had my support, Alex!" Keenan said merrily. Iara nodded in wholehearted corroboration. Alexa smiled happily as she looked around at her supporting family.

"Thanks, I really appreciate it. But...I'm still going to have at least one cocoa before I speak to him," she said with a laugh.

Robbie yawned as he awoke mere seconds before the hotel room door opened quietly as Keith made his way inside with Pichu and Reese. Reese jumped off of Keith's shoulder and approached the sleepy Sawsbuck as Keith closed the door behind him. Robbie looked up at Keith almost expectantly.

"Reese and Pichu are fine," Keith said gladly as he gently set Pichu down on the bed. He watched as Pichu looked curiously and shyly around her surroundings and walked slowly on the bed on all fours, her ears twitching occasionally. Robbie raised his head to watch the baby Pichu on the duvet; Reese watched from atop of Robbie's head, and the Buizel couldn't stop smiling at the Tiny Mouse Pokémon, despite her leaving him paralysed a small while ago. Keith looked between all three of his Pokémon, causing Reese to look in his direction.

"Bui?"

"I think Pichu needs a nickname," Keith said quietly.

"Bui-bui!" Reese said joyfully.

"But what, though...? Alexa helped me with Robbie's and Reese chose his own," Keith muttered to himself. "...she's a girl...so...girl's names, girl's names..." Pichu walked up to Keith and looked up at him in confusion.

"Sawsbuck?" Robbie asked curiously.

"I don't know what to name her," Keith sighed. "Alexa's help would be good right about now..."

"Pi?" Pichu blinked in bewilderment.

"Saws, Sawsbuck?" Keith began to think deeply until he was struck with an idea; he looked slightly sad at the idea, whatever it was.

"There's only one name I can think of," he said joylessly.

"Bui-bui?" Reese asked eagerly.

"...Ava." Pichu's ears twitched as she smiled happily.

"Pi! Pichu, Pichu!" Keith looked down at Pichu in confusion, only to see her smiling with utter delight.

"You like that name?"

"Pichu, Pichu!" Pichu jumped up and down with glee before leaping towards him. Though caught off guard, Keith held the hugging Pichu in his arms. "Pichu!" Keith chuckled shyly.

"I guess that's that then. Glad to have you with us...Ava."

 _To be continued..._


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter Sixteen – Dramas pt 1**

The next morning felt unrealistically quiet for Alexa and Hayden as they steadily started their journey down Join Avenue; there were surprisingly very few patrons wandering around the long trail, with even fewer at the market stalls carrying out transactions with the stall holders. Hayden looked towards his daughter, her look of anxiety catching his attention.

"Are you feeling all right?" he asked nicely.

"Y-yeah, I-I'm...I'm still a little apprehensive about speaking to Keith after everything that's happened recently," Alexa replied timidly. "At least, what I can remember...I know everybody's bored of hearing me talk about that by now, but-"

"Alexa, it's okay to feel nervous; the two of you haven't made eye contact since the fight happened," Hayden said graciously as he gently stroked her hair, which was partially – and somewhat loosely – tied back with a violet ribbon.

"Yeah...I couldn't even look at him outside Castelite..."

"You're having second thoughts about speaking to him, though, aren't you?" Hayden asked worriedly. Alexa chuckled nervously.

"Kind of... I'm mainly worried that my feelings about what happened to Aunt Hailey will get in the way of trying to sort things out with Keith...m-maybe I should go home while you and the others stay here in Unova..?" Hayden grew increasingly worried.

"Do you really think that's a good idea?" he asked hypothetically. "In my opinion, running away with your tail between your legs isn't going to make the problem solve itself." Alexa looked away from her father, beginning to look and feel more anxious.

"S-Sorry...it's just...I really don't want to mess things up again..."

"I can sympathise, Alexa, but it's unhealthy to be so constantly pessimistic," Hayden said gently. "If you want your relationship with Keith to survive, you're going to have to face the problems you're currently having and work them out between you."

"...implying that's still what I want..."

"You haven't even tried talking to him about it yet; it's not like you to give up so soon." Hayden suddenly, yet subtly, took Alexa away from the main path and to a lonely spot near the water fountain. He faced Alexa directly as he placed a hand on both of her shoulders; the look of distraught in Alexa's eyes caused his heart to sink. "Look, I don't know what Keith said to you that made you so upset, but you can't keep yourself down because of it; it's not doing you any favours."

"Sorry...I-I just...I guess I'm still new to being in a relationship..."

"There's no shame in that. But there's something you need to remember about relationships; they often come with bumps in the road. Believe me, I know; your mother and I encountered those bumps more than once. At the end of the day, you and Keith need to get rid of those bumps together if the two of you want your relationship to work. Do you understand?"

"Y-yeah," Alexa nodded with uncertainty. Hayden smiled kindly.

"Try not to worry about it now, sweet pea; we still need to make sure you've fully recovered from your concussion." Alexa stared at Hayden silently for a few moments before smiling.

"Yeah, okay; I'll try and worry about Keith later."

"That's my girl. And don't worry about Keith either," Hayden said as he and Alexa resumed walking down the slightly busier Join Avenue. "I'll bet he's rattled about his part in your fight; he certainly seemed to be when he arrived at the hospital the day you became concussed."

"I'll need to see that for myself; I haven't seen him properly since I ran out on him..." Hayden wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer to him softly as they made their way out of the avenue.

"Let's worry about the hospital for now, okay? That reminds me, how are you feeling right now?" Hayden asked curiously.

"I haven't had any headaches for a while at least, so take that how you will," Alexa said casually as she and Hayden walked through the hospital doors.

The hospital was almost as quiet as Join Avenue was; there were very few patients in reception, but all of them were walking wounded. Alexa and Hayden approached the reception desk at the same time as a recognisable black haired doctor walked towards the desk.

"Oh, you're here!" Aaron laughed. Hayden and Alexa faced the doctor with friendly smiles.

"Hello, Dr White," Hayden greeted. Aaron looked at his sterling silver watch.

"A little early, perhaps, but it's been so quiet today I can be flexible for now." He smiled kindly at Alexa. "Shall we?"

Hailey stood in front of the inactive stove as she looked down at the silver and pink Xtransceiver on her left arm slightly glumly. A Delcatty sat in front of Hailey, happily batting the cord that hung from Hailey's pale red dressing gown, the silver bell hanging from her blue collar jingling with almost every movement. A Jolteon with a scar below his right eye watched the Delcatty from the kitchen doorway as he scratched his neck with his paw, careful not to damage the black leather collar around it. He looked rather annoyed with Delcatty's playing.

"You sure you're all right, Hailey?" Harvey asked from the Xtransceiver. Both Harvey and Lily were in a conversation with Hailey; Harvey's video was on the main Xtransceiver screen whilst Lily's was on the secondary screen on the left hand side of the Xtransceiver.

"I said yes, didn't I?" Hailey sighed as she twiddled her light blonde hair with one of the fingers on her right hand. Her hair was untied, rather wavy and slightly damp. Delcatty ended up lying on her back as she played with Hailey's dressing gown tie, exposing the purple triangle birthmark on her front left thigh.

"Sorry, Hailey, we're just concerned, that's all," Lily said worriedly. "Hayden told me you're thinking about missing the reopened Nimbasa Contest." Lily's revelation alarmed the Jolteon.

"Y-yeah, I'm still thinking about that," Hailey said nervously.

"Are we really going to go through this all over again? Hailey, you can't give up after one mishap!"

"I know what you said, Harvey. And I've had mishaps before...just...not this bad," Hailey said glumly. Jolteon's ears dropped as he continued to observe Hailey's budding depression with worry.

"Harvey's right, Hailey, you can't let this bring you down," Lily said sweetly. "But if you truly want to miss the Nimbasa's reopened Contest, that's entirely up to you."

"Thanks, Lily. I'm still thinking about it, though, but...urgh, Charlotte, will you stop it?" Hailey glared at the playful Delcatty with annoyance. Charlotte looked up at Hailey wearing an innocent smile.

"Mreow~!"

"You wearing that dressing gown she likes, Hailey?" Harvey laughed.

"It's not the gown she likes, it's the cord; it's too long," Hailey replied as she pulled up the dangling cord in question. Charlotte sniggered as she walked away, playfully brushing her tail against Jolteon's face ever so lightly, annoying him. "I should trim it..."

"I think you should before Charlotte does it for you," Lily chuckled. "Oh, by the way, are the kids ready for school tomorrow?"

"A little early to be asking that, don't you think?" Harvey questioned. Hailey looked out of the nearby kitchen window; there, she saw Daphne and Daniel in the back garden, their Slurpuff and Aromatisse respectively. The Aromatisse had several spikes on her head, while the Slurpuff had two red spots on his belly. Daniel appeared to be looking at a carbon grey rectangular device he held in his hand.

"They're outside, training," Hailey said simply.

"What for?" Lily asked. "Do they have an exam coming up? I take it they have such exams..."

"They do, but that exam isn't why they're training now," Hailey explained. "They said they wanted to get some extra training done in case they run into any more bully problems."

"Are they still getting bullied?" Harvey groaned.

"Not as strongly as that one time, no, but they still get ridiculed for their heterochromia," Hailey replied.

"That's terrible," Lily sighed.

"I know, but I don't know what Striaton Academy's going to do about it...especially now that the new Principal's starting tomorrow," Hailey sighed.

"I'll bet he's gonna be a pushover like the last one; even the teachers hated his lax nature!" Harvey said spitefully.

"According to Daphne, she's a former police sergeant," Hailey shrugged. "Anyway, their form tutors have-" Hailey randomly looked at the screen displaying Lily's video feed. "Hey, isn't that the display cabinet Colin and I gave you for your wedding, Lily?"

"Say what now?" Harvey asked in confusion.

"Y-yes, it is," Lily replied bashfully. "We're using it to house trophies and other achievements; Keenan's gym badges are in there, too."

"That's nice and all, but what're you doing in Johto?" Hailey asked with surprise.

"Yeah, I thought you were going to stick around," Harvey said, equally as surprised.

"Oh, we're not here for long; Keenan and I came here with Cheryl to pick up some things for our homeschooling sessions tomorrow," Lily explained as she held up a science textbook with her free hand.

"So you're going to homeschool Keenan away from home?" Hailey blinked.

"Kinda defeats the purpose of it being called "homeschooling", Lily," Harvey laughed.

"I'm aware of that, Harvey," Lily chuckled.

"By the way, Harv, did you manage to call Naomi back?" Hailey asked curiously. Jolteon scowled at Hailey's intrusive question while Harvey frowned.

"I couldn't get through to her."

"S-Sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"No, it's okay, I never said anything beforehand," Harvey said nervously. "But you should focus more on getting back on track, Hailey; leave the divorce problems to me."

"Well, I should get going now; I'd like to get dinner started," Hailey said as the doorbell rang, which caught Jolteon's attention. Jolteon began to growl deeply.

"And you have company," Harvey teased.

"I still need to find some more textbooks; I've only found one before we started talking," Lily added.

"We'll see you later, Hailey," Harvey grinned before he ended his communication.

"Bye," Hailey said half-heartedly as she ended her communication with Lily. She began to leave the kitchen, petting Jolteon's head along the way. "Hey, Dexter," she said sweetly as her fingers ran along the Jolteon's fur. Dexter watched Hailey as she opened the front door; in the doorway was someone wearing a black tube top underneath a black blouse made from – of all clothing materials – lace with matching black jeans and heeled boots. Dexter glared at the Delcatty standing next to the woman.

"Hello, Hailey."

"Adelina!"

Keith walked steadily down the incredibly wide and long red drawbridge alongside Robbie, who adored the sight of the ocean around them. Reese lay comfortably on the Sawsbuck's back, his head resting against Robbie's neck, while Ava stood on Robbie's head, almost hugging one of his antlers. Keith took a deep breath and exhaled silently.

"Maybe I should wait until tomorrow."

"Bui?" Reese asked.

"I dunno, it's just a gut feeling," Keith sighed. "I just...I want to sort things out with her, but I don't know if she's going to want to at the moment; you heard what Troy said yesterday."

"Bui," Reese nodded.

"He did say I should wait until today, but I don't know if that's a good idea...I wish I could ask him, but I don't know how to get in touch with him...maybe Naomi can give me his details or something, I dunno."

"Sawsbuck?" Robbie asked solemnly. Keith glanced back at Robbie in momentary confusion. "Sawsbuck?" Keith sighed as he slightly looked away from the concerned deer Pokémon.

"I am nervous about meeting Alexa, but I'm mostly afraid of her Dad; he would've given me an earful if he hadn't spotted Ava's egg."

"Bui-bui bui-bui?" Reese asked nonchalantly.

"Well, I'm not exactly winning any brownie points with her family right now, am I?" Keith asked bitterly. "Even Keenan's turned against me."

"Saws, Sawsbuck?"

"My plan is to see if they're at their hotel in Castelia City," Keith explained as he looked ahead. "It's better to have this talk with Alexa face to face...I think."

"Saws," Robbie nodded in agreement. Ava nervously looked around her as Robbie walked, but failed to notice a small blue feather falling slowly towards her...

"PII!" Until it landed on her nose. "PICHU, PICHU!" Ava brushed her paws down her face desperately as she staggered about on Robbie's head; she would have fallen off if Keith hadn't taken her into his arms. "Pichu..."

"Relax, it's just a feather," Keith smiled kindly as he took the blue feather lying idly on Robbie's snout and held it in front of the frightened Pichu. Ava stared at the feather for a little while before sighing with relief.

"Pichu...!" Keith laughed as he discarded the feather and continued walking, still holding the now relaxed Tiny Mouse Pokémon in his arms. Robbie continued to follow his friends down the drawbridge.

"W-would you like anything to drink? Tea, cappuccino?" Hailey asked as she led Adelina into the kitchen, much to Dexter's disgust, scowling at the guest the entire time. "Water...?"

"No thank you on all counts, Hailey, dear, I've just come from the café," Adelina declined modestly. "I've spent my time there thinking about my behaviour yesterday, and I want to apologise for my rudeness; it was highly uncalled for, and I'm sorry."

"I-It's okay, Adelina...if anything, I should apologise."

"Whatever for?" Adelina asked in confusion as Huey sat down next to his Trainer. Dexter slowly entered the kitchen and approached Hailey.

"It was my fault the Contest was postponed," Hailey sighed. "I've been thinking about what happened since yesterday and...I don't know how to explain it, but I honestly feel I'm the one that caused the Contest to be suspended." Adelina's extremely minuscule smirk hadn't escaped Dexter's notice and glared angrily at her.

"Oh, why must bad things happen to such good people?" Adelina questioned, feigning her distress. Peggy walked down the stairs with Piper roosting on top of her head and spotted Adelina in the kitchen.

"I dunno...it's probably one of those things..."

"One of those things that certainly shouldn't have happened," Adelina remarked. Peggy walked off of the stairs sneakily, attempting to avert Adelina's attention. "Then again, if you hadn't suffered, perhaps someone else would have." Dexter's scowl grew in its intensity.

"So you think the Contest would've ended tragically anyway? I highly doubt that," Hailey huffed.

"You never know; Fate works in mysterious ways," Adelina said casually. "And maybe Fate didn't want anyone to win the Nimbasa Contest yesterday...so she spoiled your Bellossom's already dangerous appeal. Perhaps you should have reconsidered having your Grass type play with fire...I would NEVER allow my dear Hyacinth to carry out such a risky routine!"

"Hyacinth's Hidden Power isn't Fire, so she can't play with fire, even if she wanted to."

"That's true, but it's not the point. Do you not believe that this whole issue could have been avoided if Eric used a different appeal?" Adelina asked. Noticing how conflicted Adelina became, Peggy snuck past the kitchen and towards a closed door.

Colin sat in front of a large desk in what looked like an office. There was a computer on a separate desk next to a large printer photocopier that stood in one corner of the room. A large blue filing cabinet stood in a different corner of the room, almost opposite the printer photocopier. Colin was sitting in front of several large sheets of white paper and a few other items such as a drawing compass, a divider, a ruler and a triangle. A blue eyed Phantump with four leaves on either side of her stump head watched Colin sketching what looked like the exterior of a new building with fascination. The Phantump, however, looked towards the closed door as she and Colin heard quiet knocking.

"C'mon in," Colin said merrily as he continued his sketching. The door opened as Peggy entered the room nervously.

"Daddy?" Colin spun his chair around to face his shy daughter as he placed his pencil on his left ear.

"What's the matter, sweetheart?" he asked gently. "You nervous about school tomorrow?"

"I-It's not that," Peggy replied as she walked closer to her mostly confused father. "It's the lady Mummy's speaking to in the kitchen."

"What lady's that, cutie?"

"I don't remember her name...but it's the mean lady who made Mummy cry..." Colin became mildly infuriated.

"Adelina... Right..!" Colin stood up from his black office chair and started to walk to the door. "C'mon, Madison."

"Phantump," Madison complied as she hovered after her Trainer. Peggy quickly followed her father out of the office.

"I don't know, Adelina! Since the incident happened, I don't know what to think! My family keeps telling me it's not my fault, but something tells me it is!"

"I'd follow that intuition, dear; it was your appeal that backfired, after all," Adelina stated bluntly. Dexter began growling angrily at Adelina. "Honestly, sweetheart, your appeals have a habit of backfiring, don't they? I saw Dexter's appeal five years ago; the Zap Cannon/Thundershock combo? I didn't think he'd miss that badly."

"JOLT!" Dexter roared furiously at the insensitive lady. Hailey gently stroked her Jolteon's head, which calmed him down to some extent; his snarling faded into a low growl.

"That mishap worked in our favour, so it hardly counts."

"My point is you've been having more and more mishaps for the past five years or so; are you even sure you've still got the knack?" Adelina questioned as Colin arrived at the kitchen doorway. "In my honest opinion, Hailey, you've seem to have lost it after your Double Performance left little Dexter with his scar."

"That's enough!" Colin suddenly exclaimed angrily. Hailey and Adelina face the irate architect; Hailey was surprised, but Adelina didn't seem to care.

"Did we disturb your artistic flow, Colin?" Adelina asked sarcastically.

"I am not having you in this house if all you're going to be doing is bothering my wife!" Colin snapped sharply. "And considering what happened yesterday, I presume that's all you're going to be doing, so I suggest you leave right now!" Adelina spotted the shy Peggy hiding behind her father's right leg, clinging to his jeans with both hands.

"Let's not raise voices in front of the little one, all right?" Colin looked at Adelina with disgust.

"Just get out!" Adelina shrugged casually before facing Hailey one last time, causing Dexter to growl loudly again.

"If I were you, I'd evaluate Eric's potential as a Contest Pokémon," Adelina began. "And consider replacing him with something else..." She smirked. "Preferably with something that won't try to kill everyone around it." Before Colin could physically force her to move, Adelina walked out of the kitchen. "Come along, Huey, it's time to rehearse for the Nimbasa Contest again. I'm sure Hyacinth would appreciate the honour of showing how a REAL Flower Pokémon should perform."

"Reow!" Huey willingly followed Adelina out of the kitchen and, ultimately, the house, leaving Hailey feeling hurt and distraught. Colin approached Hailey quickly as she sat herself down on the nearest chair around the table.

"Hailey, are you all right?" Colin asked worriedly.

"I-I just...I don't know..!" Hailey buried her face in both of her hands, causing Peggy and Piper to look as hurt as Hailey was. Dexter approached Hailey and rested his paw on her thigh comfortingly. Colin held up his right arm and searched through his contact list in his black and white Xtransceiver.

"Adelina had no right to be here..."

"I-I'm sorry..!"

"It's not your fault, Honeybee; she's supposed to be your friend. Not that she's been living up to that reputation as of late," Colin grumbled as he initiated contact with two numbers.

The examination room looked like any examination room should. There was an examination bed on one side of the room, where Alexa was sitting, a cork board near the room's entrance with different medical leaflets and posters depicting various issues, including drug abuse and blood donation, all pinned to the board with different coloured pins. A computer sat on a desk opposite the cork board, but it was turned off. Hayden stood next to Alexa until his black and gold Xtransceiver suddenly began to emit an upbeat guitar tune, which caught his attention. Alexa watched as Hayden lifted his arm up to see who was calling him.

"It's Colin."

"Maybe it's about Aunt Hailey," Alexa guessed worriedly.

"I'll take it outside, okay?"

"We'll be all right here," Aaron smiled. "You go ahead."

"Thank you," Hayden smiled back as he left the room, stroking Alexa's hair a little before walking outside.

Hayden closed the exam room door behind him as he accepted the incoming communication. A second screen suddenly shot out of the Xtransceiver's left hand side, showing Harvey's video feed, which seemed to have confused both him and Harvey.

"What's going on, Colin?" Hayden asked in puzzlement. Part of Laddy's head could be seen in Harvey's video.

"Yeah, I'm trying to visit my ex-wife," he said grumpily. "Well, I'm not in the hotel yet, but that is not the point."

"Sorry to bother you, fellas, but Adelina just left the house," Colin said nastily.

"Adelina? What did she want?" Hayden asked.

"To upset my wife further, that's what," Colin replied fiercely.

"What, again?! Hadn't she caused enough psychological damage at the Contest Hall?!" Harvey asked crossly.

"Apparently not," Colin sighed as he seemed to be walking to a different part of the house. "I'm getting worried; she wasn't completely herself after we came home from the Nimbasa restaurant, but, after Adelina showed up just now, Hailey seems to be even more distressed than before."

"So you think Adelina deliberately compromised Hailey's self-esteem even further while she was visiting?" Harvey asked quizzically.

"She played the Hyacinth card just before she left," Colin said tensely. "That's what really upset Hailey just now."

"I swear Adelina only caught Hyacinth to show up Eric," Hayden muttered irately.

"I thought the same thing when I first saw that self-righteous Vileplume," Harvey agreed meanly. "So, Colin, you want Hayden and I to come over or..?"

"You're both busy, so not right now; I should be able to bring Hailey back to her senses on my own. I just thought I'd keep you both up to speed with what's happening with her, being her older brothers and all."

"I appreciate it, thank you, Colin," Hayden said kindly.

"I do, too; thanks, buddy," Harvey grinned. "But that Adelina...she's really grinding my gears right about now..."

"Hailey's the priority here, Harvey."

"What about Alexa?" Colin asked Hayden with concern. "You're at the hospital right now, aren't you?"

"It's just a check up, Colin, it's nothing serious," Hayden smiled. "But I'll let you know what the verdict is when we get back to our hotel."

"Tell her I said hi!" Harvey said happily. Hayden laughed.

"Will do."

Harvey leaned against the wall outside Driftveil Star hotel, his left arm held up in front of him; his silver and gold Xtransceiver displayed Colin's video feed on the central screen and Hayden's on the secondary screen on the Xtransceiver's left hand side. Laddy watched the communication from Harvey's left shoulder.

"Anyway, I should get going; otherwise, Naomi's going to be too busy to give anyone the time of day," Harvey said nervously.

"Good luck," Hayden said solemnly.

"Thanks, I'll need it," Harvey replied sheepishly. "Colin, you just take care of our baby sister, okay? Keep her as bubbly as you can."

"I'll do my best," Colin smiled.

"All right, see you guys later."

"Bye, Harvey," Colin said nicely.

"See ya," Hayden said as he abruptly shut off his video feed. Colin ended his video soon after Harvey pushed the secondary screen back inside the Xtransceiver. He sighed as he lowered his arm.

Harvey slowly walked through the hotel's revolving doors and saw that the hotel was far less busier than he had anticipated; there were indeed many people in the lobby, but there were more people sitting on the sofas reading newspapers and magazines over cups of coffees and tea than queuing at the reception desk with their luggage. There was a bleach blonde male at the reception desk in place of the usual Rhonda. Harvey took a deep breath and was about to venture further into the hotel when he saw a black haired woman approaching the male receptionist with a gentle smile just as the last person in the queue left the desk and hotel. The woman's appearance took Harvey and Laddy by complete surprise; they recognised the woman, but she looked more managerial than they thought she'd be.

"How are you doing, Ben?" Naomi asked kindly.

"That was the last check out for the time being, ma'am; so far, no complications," Ben replied contentedly.

"The system not confusing you at all?"

"No, ma'am," Ben replied as Harvey began to silently approach the reception desk. "Is Rhonda okay with it now?"

"I'll give her a break; the system was literally brand new when she came on shift yesterday," Naomi smiled.

"Naomi?"

"Hm?" Naomi looked up only for her confusion to turn into shock. "Harvey?!"

Hayden returned to the examination room and closed the door behind him before approaching Alexa again.

"Everything okay, Dad?" Hayden sighed as he sat next to Alexa on the examination bed and wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

"I'll tell you a little later, okay?" he replied with a gentle smile. Alexa became worried, but looked at Aaron when Hayden began talking to him. "How is she, Dr White?"

"Well, there's no evidence of nausea and she seems to have her full composure and stability back at the very least," Aaron said as he checked his clipboard. "Her language is as fluent as ever and her vision and hearing are still perfect..."

"How many tests did you run anyway?" Hayden asked in bewilderment.

"You can't be too careful with head injuries, Mr Thorndyke; even a minor head injury could end up becoming dangerous to a patient," Aaron said seriously. "That being said," he continued, lowering his clipboard. "I am confident that Alexa has made a full recovery." Hayden sighed with relief.

"Thank Arceus..."

"There are still certain precautions I'd personally like you and Alexa to take for the next few weeks, though," Aaron said.

"What precautions?" Alexa asked worriedly.

"First and foremost, avoid as much stress as possible," Aaron replied. Alexa recoiled immediately, confusing Aaron. "What's the matter?"

"I-I have some personal issues I need to sort out...it's been stressing me for the last two weeks," she admitted.

"I see... I'm not saying you should avoid the problem, but try to avoid the stress it may bring."

"So I can still sort things out?" Alexa asked hopefully.

"So long as you don't let any stress get to you, yes," Aaron replied. Alexa sighed with relief.

"Thank Arceus..."

"Anything else?" Hayden asked.

"Do you play sports, Alexa?" Aaron asked.

"No, I'm more interested in gymnastics," Alexa replied truthfully.

"Then I don't think that will be a problem. I don't know, though, gymnastics isn't covered on the "dos and don'ts" of concussion recovery..."

"If I do a handstand or something after my Dad and I leave the hospital and I feel dizzy afterwards, I won't do any more for a few weeks," Alexa suggested.

"Sounds like a plan to me," Aaron smiled. "Anyway, I think that's everything, so we're pretty much done here," he said as he stood up from his chair. He returned the chair to its original place in front of the computer as Alexa and Hayden stood up from the bed.

"Thank you, Dr White," Alexa said gratefully.

"You're welcome," Aaron said kindly as he exited the room, leaving the door open to allow Alexa and Hayden to exit. "Feel free to get in touch with me if you have further problems or questions."

"Will do. Thank you very much, Dr White," Hayden said appreciatively.

"Not at all. You have a nice day," Aaron grinned as he walked away from Alexa and Hayden, waving a little as he left. Hayden and Alexa walked in the opposite direction, towards the reception area of the hospital.

"I'm glad you're in the clear, sweetie," Hayden smiled. Alexa smiled timidly.

"Yeah, me too. But I'm mostly glad I can still try and talk to Keith if I can keep myself from getting stressed."

"So long as you enhance your calm whenever's necessary, I'm sure you'll be fine," Hayden said reassuringly. Through the corner of his eye, he spotted a quiet coffee shop next door the the busier hospital gift shop.

"I'll try my best. Thanks, Dad," Alexa said sweetly. She soon noticed that she was walking away from the hospital entrance. "Uh, Dad...? Exit's over there..."

"Change of plans," Hayden grinned.

Keith and Robbie sighed with relief as they finally stepped off of the arduously long drawbridge. As they tried to catch their breaths, they looked around the area; there was a straight road in front of them with the Route Gate at the farthest end of the route. A caravan of sorts was parked near the gate, with a baker selling all sorts of freshly produced bakery items, such as cakes and bread rolls, from the tray that hung around her shoulders; she had attracted several potential customers with her produce. Other bystanders were gathered around a casual guitarist who played a soothing and gentle melody from his guitar. Other people – presumably Pokémon Trainers – were walking along the route; some heading to the Route Gate, some heading to Driftveil Drawbridge. As soon as he caught his breath, Keith stood up straight.

"Still got a long way to go," he said quietly. "Let's keep at it, okay?"

"Sawsbuck!" Robbie said as he looked over his shoulder. Keith turned his head to face Robbie, but continued walking.

"If I wanted to ride on your back again, I would've climbed on as soon as we left the hotel," he said firmly. "Besides, you've carried me enough for now; you need a break," he said kindly. He looked ahead of him, but his shoulder collided with the shoulder of a passing girl; she had rather messy dirty blonde hair, deep blue eyes and wore a smart-looking black coat over her brown-grey turtleneck. Ava panicked and slipped out of Keith's arms as the girl looked towards Keith apologetically. Ava ran away from Keith, but crashed into the chest of a highly disgruntled Dewott with fluffy grey eyebrows, who looked down at the frightened Pichu irately.

"Sorry! Are you okay?" she asked with concern. Keith faced the girl as he rubbed his shoulder with his free hand.

"Yeah, I'm okay. Sorry, I wasn't looking where I was going; are you okay?" Keith asked hastily.

"No, I'm fine," the girl smiled kindly.

"P-P-PICHU!" Ava wept as she ran around the Dewott and towards the Route Gate. Hearing her scream, Keith, Robbie and the girl watched the fleeing Pichu; Reese awoke with a start and shot straight up onto Robbie's head upon hearing the commotion.

"Ava, wait!" Keith cried as he ran after his sobbing Pichu.

"Hey, wait!" the girl cried. Keith, however, was already racing down the path after his infant Pokémon. Robbie bowed apologetically before galloping after his companion. After the Sawsbuck disappeared from her line of sight, the girl looked down at her Dewott, looking rather unamused. "Boris, what did you say to upset that Pichu?" The Dewott folded his arms and looked away from her as he huffed.

"You didn't have to do this, Dad," Alexa said modestly as she and Hayden exited the hospital; both of them held a paper cup in their hands, both with a steaming hot liquid inside.

"You were the one who brought up the hot cooca," Hayden teased.

"I know, but this isn't exactly what I had in mind," Alexa laughed. "...thanks for this anyway, though."

"My pleasure," Hayden said courteously as he and Alexa started to walk away from the hospital. "Is there anything you want to do before we go back to Castelia?"

"I don't think so," Alexa mused. "I don't really have anything else on my agenda today," she said as she drank some of her cocoa from her coffee cup.

"Me neither, that's why I asked," Hayden laughed.

"PICHU!" Ava's fearful cries attracted Alexa and Hayden's attention as they looked towards the northern bridge; Ava sprinted across the bridge in tears with Keith and Robbie in hot pursuit.

"Ava, wait up!" Keith yelled desperately. Alexa watched with panic as Keith finally caught up to Ava and scooped her up with both hands. "Gotcha!"

"PII!" Startled by Keith's sudden grab, Ava released a discharge of electricity from both cheeks, shocking Keith in the process. When the electricity faded, Ava lay limp in Keith's arms, giddy from the shock. Robbie caught up to Keith as he began to straighten his messy hair with one hand.

"Saws?!"

"I'm okay; she's still not doing any damage to me," Keith said rather calmly.

"Keith?!" Keith, Robbie and Reese finally noticed Alexa and Hayden standing near the corner of the hospital; Alexa appeared to be in a state of shock while Hayden looked as though he was between frustration and concern. Keith suddenly felt tense, especially after seeing the irritation in Hayden's eyes.

"...Alexa."

 _To be continued..._


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter Seventeen – Dramas pt 2**

Naomi practically stormed into her office, Harvey in close pursuit. The office itself looked standard for an office; the walls and carpet were both chocolate brown, there was a bookcase along one side of the wall, a water cooler opposite the bookcase near the large pine office desk facing the office door. A Flareon with cream coloured paws awoke with a start after Naomi slammed the door open and panted heavily as Harvey closed the door quietly.

"Why didn't you tell me you got promoted?!" he asked in shock.

"I-I didn't know how to, Harvey!" Naomi panicked, resting one hand on her desk and keeping her back against her ex-husband.

"I don't see what's so hard about saying 'I've been promoted'," Harvey muttered. He soon smiled. "Were you afraid of how I'd react? Naomi, this is a good thing!" The Flareon slowly walked out of the basket and looked up at Harvey, surprised to see him. "If anyone here deserved your promotion, it's you!"

"You sound so biased right now," Naomi said unenthusiastically, resting her fingers on her forehead.

"Perhaps, but what I said is still true." Flareon poked Harvey's leg with a paw, causing him to look down at the Flame Pokémon in confusion. "No way...is that Jason?" The Flareon's blue eyes lit up with delight.

"Flare!" Jason grinned as Harvey bent down to lift the happy Flareon in his arms.

"When did this happen, buddy?!" Harvey asked happily as he ruffled the cream tuft on Jason's head.

"Flareon!"

"Harvey...you didn't come here to coddle Jason." Harvey looked towards Naomi; he and Laddy could tell she was stressed.

"I'm just getting reacquainted with him; I mean, come on...last I saw him, he was still an Eevee, which was 9 years ago." Harvey sighed, causing Laddy to look at him worriedly. "I take it your promotion was why you wanted the alimony payments to stop?"

"Yes..." Naomi turned around to face Harvey; the look of guilt and anguish on her face gravely concerned him, Jason and Laddy. "Originally, this wasn't what I wanted...this promotion. I-I mean...considering the position used to be his..." Harvey scowled vengefully.

"Never mind that asshole!" he yelled.

"Harvey-"

"No! I'm sorry, Naomi, but he was the one in the wrong, not you!" he shouted angrily. "He made the move on you, even after you specifically told him you were married! Hell, if I were there when it happened, I would've landed him in Intensive Care! ...and myself in the precinct, most likely, but it would've been worth it."

"Harvey!"

"My point is you did nothing wrong, so stop saying you did!"

"I let him come on to me, Harvey!" Harvey glared at her, unintentionally intimidating her.

"That's bullshit, Naomi; he was a bully who made things difficult for everyone when things didn't go his way!"

"I couldn't do anything about it, he was my boss!" Naomi retorted shakily.

"And a pretty poor one at that. Well, the joke's on him now," Harvey said with a smirk. "He ended up meeting his comeuppance and you ended up with his job! Poetic justice, I say."

"...h-his marriage ended because of me..."

"No; his marriage ended because his wife finally realised how much of a pig her husband was when he tried to sink his teeth into my wife's neck and Arceus knows where else!" Harvey argued fiercely. "The whole affair was entirely his fault! That's why I didn't want to go through with the divorce!" Naomi was shocked at the confession.

"But...if you didn't want to go through with it...why did you?" she asked. Harvey lowered his head, almost in shame, and slightly looked away from her. "...Harvey?"

"...because it was what you wanted."

"Are you sure you're okay?" Alexa asked worriedly, noticing Keith's hair was still slightly messy from Ava's electrical discharge.

"Y-yeah...thanks."

"When did you get here?" Hayden asked quickly. Alexa looked up at her father with concern, easily noticing his annoyance, while Keith faced him with very slight anxiety.

"Yesterday," he replied truthfully. "Ava hatched later that day."

"Ava?" Alexa questioned curiously.

"My Pichu," Keith replied, looking down at his groggy Pokémon. "She's still a baby, so her electricity doesn't hurt too badly yet," he said as he looked up at Alexa again. He spotted the hospital behind her and looked at her with worry. "Are you okay?"

"I-"

"She's fine, no thanks to you." Hayden abruptly answered rudely. Keith recoiled and looked away from him. Alexa looked away from her father and took a small drink from her coffee cup.

"...I'm sorry." Keith hesitantly looked at Hayden squarely in the eyes from where he stood. "I'm sorry about what happened...it was an accident, I swear it."

"Hmph," Hayden huffed as he looked away from Keith resentfully, making the boy feel more awkward than before. Reese stared daggers at Hayden for his bad attitude while Robbie looked indifferent; he tried to stay neutral.

"I..." Keith looked at Alexa in confusion as she began to speak up; he was a little surprised to see her smiling kindly at him. "I'm trying to put the whole thing behind me; I think you should do the same."

"...but you're okay?" Keith asked with concern.

"The doctor says I'm fine, so...yeah, I'm okay. C-Considering..."

"Alexa." Alexa looked up at her father in confusion; she became concerned when she noticed how stern he looked. "We should be on our way; I don't want to keep Keenan and your mother waiting if they're back by now," he said firmly. Alexa nodded compliantly as she and Hayden began to walk away from Keith, down towards Join Avenue.

"I-I'm sorry about Hailey!" Keith called quickly. Hayden stopped dead in his tracks, stunned at Keith's words. Alexa was surprised Keith knew who Hailey was and watched Hayden anxiously as he approached Keith; Keith felt apprehensive as Hayden drew closer to him, despite Hayden's momentary bewilderment.

"What?"

"I-I saw the Contest yesterday, but I didn't know she was your sister until I met Alexa's cousin, Troy...I-I'm sorry about-"

"Stop." Keith flinched. Hayden took a deep breath and sighed. "I appreciate your concern, I really do...but I don't need it," he said, as calmly as he could. "You just focus on sorting things out with my daughter and let ME worry about my little sister. Okay?"

"...y-yes...of course...sorry." Without another word, Hayden turned and walked back to Alexa. After placing an arm around her shoulders, the pair began walking towards Join Avenue again. However, Keith was surprised to see Alexa looking back at him, mouthing "sorry" to him. Reese shook his head with disapproval after Alexa and Hayden disappeared from view. Robbie looked at Keith miserably.

"Saws?"

"He's pissed...I could see it in his eyes...he really hates me right now...but I'm going to make things right with her...I have to."

"Aroma~!" Aromatisse sang as she formed a pink sphere of energy in between her hands. "Tisse~!" She opened her arms out, breaking the sphere into many sparkles that released a gentle wave of soothing energy that headed towards the idle Slurpuff; upon colliding with Slurpuff's body, the waves healed his bumps and bruises.

"Slur!" The Slurpuff rejoiced.

"Okay, that was definitely Heal Pulse," Daniel said as he looked down at his carbon grey gadget. "Beautifully done, Veronica."

"Aromatisse~!" Veronica laughed bashfully.

"No, he's right, Ronnie, that Heal Pulse had to have looked as wonderful as it felt!" Daphne smiled. "Was it, Tucker?"

"Slurpuff, Slurpuff!" Tucker bounced up and down in sheer delight. Veronica giggled while Daphne frowned as she looked towards her brother.

"Why were you so keen to train Tucker and Veronica anyway?" she asked in puzzlement. "Thinking of a rematch against Keenan and Alexa?" she asked teasingly.

"No."

"Then why?" Daphne asked seriously. "We have another Battling Exam this semester; we can take advantage of it like we did last year."

"I just want to be fully prepared for tomorrow, that's all," Daniel answered truthfully as he turned his device off. Daphne approached him and looked at him with uncertainty.

"Daniel...those guys graduated LAST year...it won't happen again," she said gently as she placed her hand softly on his cheek.

"They didn't graduate," Daniel said harshly. "They flunked out." Daphne recoiled her arm and took a step back, looking irritated.

"Even so, they're not coming back!" she yelled. "Stop worrying about it!"

"You make it sound so easy, Daphne, you really do," Daniel grumbled.

"You can't keep holding onto it, it's not good for you," Daphne said sadly. "I know it affected you to the point where you've disregarded what little emotion you used to show, but you need to move on from it; maybe then you'll eventually return to who you used to be."

"I don't know...I've become so used to who I am now, it...the idea of being who I used to be feels weird to me..." Daphne smiled.

"Daniel...this whole family's weird."

"How do you figure?"

"We're essentially a family of Pokémon Whisperers." Daniel chuckled.

"I don't get it; how are you the only one who can still make me laugh?"

"Probably because I'm your twin," Daphne said playfully. "But I'm sure Peggy can make you laugh, too," she mused as the back door opened behind her.

"Daphne! Danny!" Peggy called as she ran towards her twin siblings, Piper still roosting comfortably on her head. Daphne smiled down at her little sister.

"Hey, Pegs, we were just talking about you! You can still make Daniel laugh, right?"

"What's the matter?" Daniel asked, noticing the worried look on the little girl's face.

"Daddy's mad."

"How come? Did a client bail on him again?" Daphne asked in bemusement.

"N-no, the mean Addie lady came by," Peggy answered.

"Adelina?" Daniel asked.

"Yeah, her! I think she made Mummy cry again."

"Oh, for..!" Daniel sighed as he removed his glasses and rubbed his eyes. "What exactly is her problem?!"

"If you ask me, she's acting like a spoiled little princess," Daphne said harshly, fully understanding her brother's frustration. "A spoiled little princess who didn't get what she wanted."

"But...you can't get what you want all the time," Peggy said shyly.

"See!?" Daniel suddenly asked, pointing both hands towards his younger sister. If an 8 year old knows that, why can't someone Adelina's age?! It makes no sense!"

"Neither does she if she went out of her way to bug Mum," Daphne mused. "Peggy, did you hear anything?"

"I tried not to," Peggy replied innocently.

"We're not accusing you of eavesdropping," Daniel said as he crouched in front of the child. "But did you happen to hear anything while you were passing her? Anything at all that you can remember?"

"Um...just that she told Mummy to replace Eric or something..."

"So Adelina's blaming Eric now?!" Daphne exclaimed angrily.

"Sounds like Adelina's implicating the both of them," Daniel said calmly as he stood up. He placed both hands on Peggy's shoulders as he faced Daphne directly. "Something tells me we haven't seen the last of her, though." Daphne's demeanour softened.

"Let's see how Mum's doing."

Lily, Keenan, Iara and Cheryl appeared in their hotel room in an instantaneous white flash of light. Between them, Lily and Keenan carried various text books, exercise books and various pieces of stationery. Iara immediately jumped down onto the plush dark brown carpet and jumped up onto one of the two leather sofas.

"All right, I think we have everything to start the lessons again tomorrow," Lily smiled as she approached the desk near the television, where she placed the textbooks she held in her arms.

"Great," Keenan said half-heartedly. Lily looked back at Keenan with concern.

"What's the matter, sweetie? I thought you were keen on getting back to your lessons."

"I am, but that's not the problem..."

"Oh...I see what the problem is," Lily said as she walked over to her son. "You're still worried about Alexa."

"And Aunt Hailey; I still have a bad feeling about Adelina..."

"Honey, I understand your concerns – I'm worried about them myself – but they need to sort their troubles out themselves," Lily said politely as she knelt down to meet her son's direct line of sight. "All we can do is be there for them both if they need it; we can't solve their problems for them, but we can support them as much as we can." Keenan smiled a little.

"Yeah! But I wonder if Alex's okay..."

"Let's find out," Lily smiled as she stood up. She pulled the navy blue sleeve up her left arm to reveal her black and purple Xtransceiver. She touched the screen with her finger numerous times, searching her Xtransceiver for her contact list until she found Hayden's and initiated the contact. After several seconds of waiting, Hayden's video feed appeared on the screen. Hayden was smiling happily.

"Hi, honey!"

"Hi, sweetie! Where are you?"

"Join Avenue," Hayden replied. "We're on our way back right now," he added as he looked to his right. Alexa soon appeared on the video feed.

"Hi!"

"Hi, sweetheart! Was everything okay at the hospital?" Lily asked. Keenan listened intently.

"Yeah, the doctor said I'm fine," Alexa replied happily. "Now I just need to see if I can do a handstand without feeling dizzy afterwards." Lily chuckled.

"That's great, sweetheart!" Keenan was just as happy for Alexa as Lily was, but soon headed to his hotel bedroom. "Your brother and I just returned to the hotel room about a minute ago. That reminds me, Hayden, Harvey and I spoke to Hailey earlier this morning, just to check on Hailey." Hayden frowned.

"Actually, Colin contacted me and Harvey earlier on, too; it wasn't good news."

"What happened?" Lily asked worriedly as Keenan brought his black squared bag over to the television.

"Hailey had a visitor; Adelina. And the visit...left a lot to be desired," Hayden explained. "Actually, it left Hailey pretty rattled."

"Oh, no..."

"Why would she do that?" Alexa asked. "I mean, Aunt Hailey feels bad enough about what happened at the Contest as it is, why would Adelina want Hailey to suffer even more than she already is?" Keenan listened to his sister keenly; though she hid it masterfully, Keenan could tell she already had her suspicions about the revelation. As did he.

"I don't know, Lexie, but Colin is furious with Adelina," Hayden replied. "He insists that he can calm Hailey down on his own, but I'm more than likely still going to visit her later today or tomorrow."

"You seem stressed, Hayden...maybe it's a better idea to leave the visit until tomorrow?" Lily proposed.

"Yeah, you're right." Keenan tried not to pay any more attention to his mother's Xtransceiver conversation and unpacked his PlayBox from its bag. "We'll see you both at the hotel."

"Take your time, there's no rush. We'll see you later," Lily said kindly as she hung up the Xtransceiver call.

"Why didn't you tell her about Keith?" Alexa asked as Hayden lowered his arm. Hayden sighed as he and Alexa returned to Join Avenue's main path. Join Avenue was bustling with activity; there were far more people looking for business at the many stalls around the avenue than walking down it. Neither Alexa nor Hayden had their paper cups in their hands.

"I didn't want to, plain and simple," Hayden replied. He soon sight, almost regretfully. "Sorry, Lexie; I still resent him for what he did to upset you. But-"

"You don't even know what it was he did," Alexa said uneasily.

"It still upset you, whatever it was, and I resent him for it." Hayden smiled sweetly at her. "But don't let that stop you; if you two can work things out, I'd be more than happy to get to know him again," he said as he placed his hand on her shoulder.

"I don't think you'd be so willing if you knew what he did..."

"If anything, I'd probably resent him more if I knew the full story."

"I don't know about that," Alexa said quietly to herself.

"Alexa!" Alexa and Hayden turned around and spotted Keith running towards her, Robbie galloping behind him; Reese was on his head, preventing the still giddy Pichu from falling off of the Sawsbuck's back. Hayden immediately became disgruntled when Keith approached Alexa.

"Keith?"

"I just realised...I don't have a way to contact you right now, and I forgot to ask if...if you'd like to get together at some point? Y'know, to talk?" Hayden observed the conversation warily.

"Sorry about that; leaving you with no way to get in touch with me, I mean," Alexa apologised.

"It's okay, I don't blame you. We really do need to talk, though, but I don't know where we should talk," Keith said quietly. "I can't imagine meeting you at your hotel's a good idea right now, and I haven't-"

"Are you okay to meet me outside Gear Station in Nimbasa City?" Alexa asked abruptly. Keith raised a confused eyebrow.

"Gear Station?"

"It's the first building you see when you leave Join Avenue," Alexa explained, pointing in front of her; Keith looked behind him, looking at the way he came in. "Very hard to miss."

"Why there?" Keith asked as he faced Alexa.

"There's a coffee shop in Anville Town that's always quiet on weekdays; maybe that'd be a good place to start talking," Alexa suggested plainly.

"...yeah, okay," Keith nodded. "Sounds good. What time?"

"If I remember correctly, the earliest train to Anville leaves at 10am...is that any good? Meeting at Gear Station before 10?"

"Sounds good to me," Keith smiled. "So, I'll see you at Gear Station before 10am tomorrow; got it. Thanks, Alexa." Despite Alexa still looking uncertain, Hayden smiled at how calm she was during the entire conversation.

"You're welcome," she replied quietly, giving him a weak smile. Keith began to approach her, but noticed how uncomfortable she looked and halted himself. Instead, he gave her a gentle smile before walking away from her. Once his back was turned to her, his smile quickly died and his walking turned into a quick sprint. Robbie galloped after him, confused and concern about Keith's sudden mood change. Hayden looked down at Alexa as the pair turned to walk towards Route 4 again.

"That was impressive, Alexa."

"Hm?" Alexa looked up at Hayden curiously.

"How calm you were. That's what I was talking about before. If you keep that up while you're working things out, you'll sort your problems out in no time."

"You think so?" Alexa asked, starting to smile.

"There's not a single doubt in my mind, pumpkin," Hayden said lovingly as he pulled his daughter in for a one-armed hug, to which Alexa returned with both arms.

Daniel, Daphne and Peggy entered the house through the back door and quietly approached the kitchen, where Hailey was still burying her face in her hands at the table. Colin sat next to her, desperately trying to calm her down, Madison hovering nearby, watching Hailey's increasing stress worriedly.

"Honey, it's going to be okay," Colin said reassuringly.

"How can you be so sure..?" Hailey asked tearfully. "What if I single-handedly ruined the Contest for everyone!?"

"Adelina's just putting the idea into your head because she's looking for someone to blame," Colin presumed quickly. "We all know how hard you and Eric worked to perfect your appeal, but-"

"It messed up!" Hailey cried. "Like all of my appeals do!"

"That's not true," Colin said gently. "Annabelle's first Pokémon Contest went flawlessly, Eric's appeal in Slateport City was awe-inspiring, and even Josh's appeal in Lilycove was breath-taking, and Josh is more of a battling Pokémon like Flint! You're a great Co-ordinator, Hailey; Adelina's just making you think you're not; she's lying to you, she's got to be!"

"Why would she lie to me..?! She's my friend; friends don't lie to each other..!" Hailey wept. The more upset Hailey became, the more distressed Peggy felt and the more infuriated the twins felt.

"I know, Honeybee...I know..." Colin cuddled Hailey comfortingly as she tried her hardest not to weep any louder. "I'm starting to think Adelina's a bad friend; if she were true, she'd be supporting you like a real friend should, not kick you when you're down..." Hailey carefully pulled herself from her husband's cuddle.

"Do you really think she'd betray my trust like that..?" she asked sorrowfully.

"In my honest opinion? I...I think she is right now," Colin replied reluctantly. "I-I thought the two of you were good friends, too, but...as much as I'd rather believe she's just pulling your leg, she seemed pretty intent on abusing your trust in her...by putting these ideas about replacing Eric and being an inept Co-ordinator into your head..."

"I-I...no..! W-Why would she..?"

"I don't know, love..." Before Colin could retry his consoling cuddle, Hailey immediately stood up from the kitchen chair, ran out of the room and raced up the stairs; Colin tried to pursue her, but a loud slam caused him to stop. "Hailey..."

"Dad?" Colin and Madison looked towards the doorway and saw Daphne, Daniel and Peggy approaching him slowly.

"How long have you been there?" he asked in shock.

"Long enough to see how much damage Adelina's causing to Mum," Daniel said harshly. Colin sighed as he ran both hands through his hair, accidentally pushing his pencil out of his ear. Madison's eyes shone in a gentle orange glow, causing the pencil to halt mid-fall as it shone in the same light. Madison lifted the pencil up to Colin, who took it from her telekinetic control and placed it back on his ear.

"Thanks, Madison."

"Phantump," Madison nodded modestly.

"I'm...I'm sorry you had to see your mother so stressed," Colin apologised. "She blamed herself for ruining yesterday's Contest, as you know, but I think she's even more conflicted than before."

"Is Adelina going to hurt Mummy again?" Peggy asked with grave worry. Colin gave her a reassuring smile as he crouched to her level.

"Not if I can help it, cutie," he said calmingly. "And I'm sure both of your uncles will do the same," he added as he stood up.

"But that Adelina...we heard what she said to Mum from Peggy and she is a nasty piece of work!" Daphne snapped angrily. "I know I wouldn't want anything to do with her!"

"It's not as simple as that, sweetheart," Colin began, losing his smile. "Adelina and your mother were good friends back in the day; they exchanged their – back then – favourite bracelets as proof of that fact."

"That's really sweet," Peggy smiled.

"Yeah, if you like vinegar in your chocolate sauce," Daniel said meanly.

"Daniel..."

"No, Dad, I agree with him on this!" Daphne exclaimed. "Why would you make such a meaningful exchange like that and then stab your friend in the back when they need you most?!" Colin sighed heavily, concerning his Phantump.

"I really wish I knew, honey...I really do..."

Hailey sat in front of the birch vanity, head buried in her arms as she wept quietly. The room she was in felt warm around her; the room itself had rose red walls with luxuriously soft carpeting of the same colour. The double bed behind her looked freshly made with sandy brown satin bedclothes covering the pillows and duvet. There were various ornaments scattered between the two bedside chest of drawers on either side of the bed and the dresser sitting near the vanity, including a framed photograph depicting Colin and Hailey during their wedding day; Harvey and Hayden could be seen in the photograph next to their wives, and Ian was standing next to a woman who oddly looked exactly like Alexa, but everyone looked happy – and younger – in the photograph. Hailey lifted her head from her arms and looked at her reflection in the vanity mirror; her eyes were sore from her tears and her hair started to tangle as it dried, making her look like a complete mess. She then looked at her manicure subconsciously; her picturesque scarlet nail polish was starting to chip and crack. Not giving her ruined manicure a second thought, she opened the nearby vanity drawer and rummaged through it until she picked up a bracelet from inside it; the bracelet was made of many coloured plastic beads, each arranged to form the colours of a rainbow, that were tied to a clear plastic string. Hailey stared at the piece of handmade jewellery sadly before clasping it and pressing her hand gently on her forehead as she began to cry, tears falling gradually down her face.

 _To be continued..._


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter Eighteen – Dramas pt 3**

Keith raced into the bustling Nimbasa City, keeping his head lowered. Robbie galloped after him, but was forced to avoid crashing into fellow pedestrians during his pursuit. As he made his way onto the bridge, Keith bumped into someone's back; Robbie stopped as Keith recuperated and the person he crashed into turned around. A Reuniclus hid behind his Trainer, tightly closing his dark navy blue eyes.

"Hey, watch where you're going!" Troy complained. "Huh? Hey, Keith! Sorry, man, I didn't know it was you," he said sheepishly. His smile faded when he noticed Keith avoiding eye contact with him, his head hanging almost shamefully. "Hey, what's the matter?"

"Sorry...I wasn't looking where I was going," Keith said quietly.

"That's not a big deal right now. Why're you so glum?" Troy asked worriedly. Keith sighed as he finally raised his head to face Troy, a look of guilt plastered on his face.

"I-I...I've just spoken to Alexa; w-we're going to meet up tomorrow, for a talk," he replied uneasily.

"But that's great, surely?" Troy asked, attempting to smile. Keith tilted his head down as he held onto his arms and tried to hide his anxiety.

"Hm." Troy raised an eyebrow until a realisation came to his mind.

"Oh. I see. Did he say anything to you?" Keith clenched his right arm slightly.

"Alexa's all right...no thanks to me." Though the news of Alexa's recovery was joyous, Troy couldn't help worrying for Keith. "He really hates me..."

"I don't know if I'd go that far," Troy said kindly. "At the very least, he hates what happened that day."

"I don't blame him...I've been such a jackass..."

"I, uh, I was about to grab something to drink at the coffee bar just up ahead; wanna join me? You can have a penny for your thoughts," Troy offered. Keith looked at him with slight surprise before smiling weakly at him.

"Thanks; I appreciate it," he said kindly as he followed Troy across the bridge. Robbie and Reese sighed with relief as the Sawsbuck walked behind the two boys. Reuniclus shivered violently as he hovered alongside Troy.

Naomi stared at Harvey in utter shock as he continued to avoid her gaze. Jason and Laddy exchanged looks of concern.

"...what..? What are you talking about?" she asked quietly.

"What do you think I was talking about?" Harvey asked rhetorically as he returned Jason to his basket; he gave the Flareon one final pet before facing his ex-wife directly. "I made it clear, didn't I?"

"But I...I don't understand..."

"What's to understand?"

"Why you consented to the divorce despite being against it." Harvey's eyes widened slightly.

"I thought you had at least an inkling."

"Harvey...just tell me. Please." Harvey scoffed rudely as he scowled at her.

"I should've known this was a bad idea."

"Harvey-"

"I should go," Harvey said abruptly as he turned to make his way out of the office.

"Harvey, wait!" Harvey held onto the door handle, but refrained from pushing it down as he listened to what Naomi had to say, despite keeping his back to her. "I want to know why you agreed with the proceedings even though it wasn't what you wanted!" Naomi would've sounded a lot more demanding if she wasn't so timid. Harvey's grip on the door handle tightened.

"And here I thought it was obvious."

"Please...why...?" Harvey heaved a silent, yet deep, sigh.

"I still love you." Before Naomi could ask further questions, Harvey finally opened the door and left; he slammed the door behind him, causing Naomi to jump in fright. Naomi was left in utter shock and dismay after hearing those words; she planted her hand over half of her face and tried to withhold her tears.

Harvey sighed heavily as he stepped onto the grand Driftveil Drawbridge. As he walked leisurely, Laddy looked worried.

"Aipom?"

"I'm...I'm fine," Harvey said unconvincingly. "But...I still think it was stupid to try this under these circumstances..."

"Ai..."

"Now two women I love are upset...dammit...I'm so stupid..."

"Aipom..."

"I'll get in touch with Hayden later on; see what he wants to do about Hailey," Harvey said on a slightly more cheerful note; he even cracked a small and warm smile. "The kids go back to Striaton tomorrow, so it'll be a good opportunity for a sibling meeting."

"That sounds just darling, Harvey." Startled, Harvey and Laddy looked ahead of them, only to find Adelina and Huey standing directly in their path; Huey was smiling innocently, but Adelina carried a tiny smirk. Harvey growled angrily as he clenched his fists.

"Adelina...!"

"We're back!" Alexa announced happily as she and Hayden returned to their hotel room. There, they saw Keenan and Lily playing what appeared to be an RPG game on the PlayBox; as usual, Lily appeared to be struggling with the controller in her hands. Hayden seemed to find Lily's struggles highly amusing, while Alexa was bemused as to why she was playing on the PlayBox – and how Keenan talked her into it to begin with.

"Having fun, Lily?"

"Don't you start, Hayden," Lily said grumpily. "I can't make sense of this thing!"

"I did say you didn't have to play with me," Keenan laughed. Lily sighed.

"I thought I'd at least try and make sense of it..."

"So, is home still in one piece?" Hayden asked playfully. Lily smiled happily at her husband and daughter.

"Yes, we've managed to get everything we need to start the tutoring tomorrow," she said with satisfaction.

"Are you sure you should be going back to your studies right now, Keenan?" Alexa asked in confusion. Keenan nodded at her.

"Besides, Peggy and the twins are going back to Striaton Academy tomorrow; seemed like a good time to get my studies back on track." Alexa raised an eyebrow.

"I wonder about that..."

"His studies, his rules," Hayden said simply. "Besides, you should be more focused on what you'll be doing tomorrow."

"That being..?" Lily asked as she stood up from the floor. She suddenly rubbed the back of her calf rather rapidly. "Ow, ow, ow, ow, leg's asleep, leg's asleep...!" Keenan laughed.

"I arranged to meet with Keith tomorrow," Alexa replied nervously. Keenan and Lily looked stunned as they faced her.

"When did that happen?" Keenan asked.

"Not too long ago, in Join Avenue," Hayden explained. "Not that long after we left the hospital, actually." Lily smiled sweetly.

"I'm happy things are starting to go right, sweetheart," she said kindly. "Hayden? May I have a word, in private?" Hayden shrugged with indifference.

"Yeah, sure." He smiled at Alexa. "Why don't you take the helm until we get back? I'm kinda looking forward to seeing your mother playing another video game."

"Wha—Hayden!" Lily blushed from embarrassment as she and the laughing Hayden walked into their hotel bedroom. Alexa laughed quietly to herself as she sat next to Keenan on the floor.

"So...what am I doing here?"

"You're nervous," Keenan said with concern. Alexa's smile died as she looked at her brother.

"Of course I am; wouldn't you be if you were meeting with someone who hurt your feelings?"

"Y-Yeah...sorry." Alexa smiled sweetly.

"It's okay, don't worry about it. Just let me deal with it, yeah?" Keenan still felt uneasy, but smiled all the same.

"Okay!" Alexa shuffled a little closer to Keenan and planted a quick, yet soft, kiss on his head.

"At least try not to worry about it," she said sheepishly.

Peggy, Daniel and Daphne sat at the kitchen table, facing one another; Piper roosted next to Peggy, while Rhonda and Daphne's Espeon had their front paws on the table. Peggy and the twins each had a different drink glass sitting on a wooden coaster nearby, but all three of them appeared to be contemplating.

"First the blind accusations in the locker room...now this..? This doesn't bode well for Mum's self-esteem," Daniel said quietly. Rhonda looked up at him with concern, her ears drooping slightly.

"I know what you mean," Daphne agreed reluctantly. "I can't believe a friend would behave so deplorably..." Peggy constantly appeared perplexed with the strange words her brother and sister used.

"A true friend wouldn't be so mean," she sighed.

"Blu, Blu," Piper sang downheartedly.

"My thoughts exactly," Daphne nodded. "I mean, you heard Dad; they exchanged their favourite bracelets!"

"That was back then," Daniel stated.

"I know, but it still counts...ish."

"But...if they did that, why would Aderlie start being so mean just like that?" Peggy asked sadly.

"Adelina," Daniel corrected. "And who knows why she started this mean streak? As far as I can tell, Mum didn't give her any grounds to be treated so nastily."

"As far as I remember, all Mum ever did was defeat her in Pokémon Contests," Daphne blinked. "Is that right, Roland?"

"Espeon," Roland nodded.

"I suppose that could be the reason," Daniel began, carefully pushing his glasses up his face. "I mean, losing to the same opponent over and over again? It's almost guaranteed to lead to resentment."

"You mean Adelina's angry because Mummy keeps beating her?" Peggy asked as she took her glass of lemonade in one hand.

"Hey, you got her name right, good going!" Daphne praised as her little sister drank from the glass. "But that's basically what you're presuming, right, Daniel?" she inquired. Daniel nodded.

"To be perfectly honest, it's the only thing that makes sense at this point," he explained. "Peggy has no prior recollection of Adelina – hence her previous inability to remember her name, I would imagine – and neither of us can account for a single moment that could trigger such a violent streak. I mean, I know Adelina and Mum have a one-sided rivalry going, but, still..."

"One-sided?" Peggy asked, returning her lemonade to its coaster.

"Yep, Adelina was the one who started the rivalry between her and Mum; but Mum doesn't see the rivalry as...well, a rivalry. As far as Mum's concerned, Adelina's still her friend."

"But it's like Peggy said," Daniel mused. "A true friend wouldn't be so mean. And she lost plenty of Pokémon Contests to Mum before yesterday...so why strike something up now..?"

"Maybe she thought she could beat Mummy this time?" Peggy asked as Daphne drank from her cola glass.

"If that were true, that doesn't explain why she'd make things worse today," Daniel counter-argued. "If she legitimately thought she had a chance this time around, why would she rub salt into the wound after pointing the blame in Mum's direction...?"

"This is so confusing..!" Peggy sighed.

"Blu, Blu!"

"It would be far less confusing if we knew what the motivation was," Daphne said calmly. "Like, why she'd go out of her way to hurt Mum's feelings so brutally."

"That woman is proving to be such an enigma..."

"A what?"

"It basically means she's a puzzle, Peggy," Daniel explained, giving his little sister a warm smile. "A puzzle to which we have no clues."

"Considering we don't have any idea what made her tick when she pointed the finger, that's an accurate description right now. But do you think she was angry because she missed an opportunity to battle Mum?"

"Technically speaking, Adelina could have easily challenged her to a battle while she was here," Daniel began, taking his cola glass in hand. "But it's not like Adelina doesn't have any battling skills anyway, so that would possibly be a trivial concern at best," he added before drinking from the glass.

"You mean you remember how Adelina battles?" Daphne asked with interest.

"Is she really good?" Peggy asked curiously as Daniel returned his glass to the coaster.

"Let me put it this way; Adelina's skills, from what I recall, are nothing to laugh about."

"What's the matter, Harvey? You don't look too pleased to see me," Adelina observed as she folded her arms. Laddy glared at the woman viciously.

"Don't feign ignorance; I know what you did to Hailey," Harvey said spitefully.

"Me?" Adelina asked, pointing at herself innocently. "I don't know what you mean, darling; all I was doing was merely calling in on a dear friend."

"Do your other friends end up distressed after you visit them!?" Harvey yelled interrogatively.

"Aipom, Aipom!" Laddy shook his fist angrily in agreement; his tail hand imitated the action.

"Oh, dear...what happened to Mr Calm?" Adelina questioned tauntingly.

"I'm not in the mood to hear any of your crap!" Harvey snapped. "But...tell me why you're demolishing my sister's confidence!"

"I'm doing nothing of the sort," Adelina shrugged nonchalantly. Harvey scoffed.

"Between you and my sister's husband, I know who I trust the most. And I'm sure Hayden would agree with me; we don't take kindly to anyone who hurts our family!"

"Hmm..." Adelina began fiddling with a lock of hair on the left hand side of her head. "They do say blood is thicker than water, after all. And Hayden would agree? That doesn't surprise me; he strikes me as the kind of man who does exactly as he's told." Harvey's stance relaxed slightly.

"There's nothing wrong with that; it shows discipline."

"Discipline?" Adelina giggled. "I can't imagine others seeing it that way."

"What are you implying about my brother anyway?" Harvey asked suspiciously. Adelina's incredibly slight smirk grew a tiny bit as she giggled again.

"I'm saying I know who wears the pants in his marriage. Or did nobody inform you how dominant sweet little Lily was after you raced after your baby sister?"

"You pissed her off!" Harvey yelled furiously. "And believe me when I say that Lily doesn't get pissed off that easily!"

"That doesn't surprise me; she doesn't wear her heart on her sleeve like the rest of you Thorndykes."

"...when the hell did you become such a malicious bully?!" Harvey quietly asked meanly. "Hailey trusts you! Why would you put her down like that?!"

"Aipom!" Laddy snarled viciously.

"No need to use profanities, Laddy," Harvey whispered. "Not yet, at least." Adelina giggled a little louder.

"Oh, I keep forgetting about that; I'm actually surprised none of you have been picked on for that," she said mean-spiritedly. "So it's okay for a person to talk to a Pokémon like Pokémon Whisperers, but it isn't for one person to have two eye colours?"

"Don't change the subject!" Harvey yelled violently. "Why are you being so cruel to someone who would trust you with her life?!"

The coffee bar was pleasantly quiet with an atmosphere to match; other patrons sat at the many tables, talking amongst themselves over a nice hot beverage, some even with a sandwich or a muffin on the side. The baristas were all busy preparing customer's drinks, but they were all friendly and wearing a smile that could raise anyone's spirits. Keith and Troy sat across one another on one of the tables at the back end of the coffee shop, both with a cup of freshly brewed coffee next to them. Robbie, Reese, the now conscious and alert Ava and Troy's Reuniclus sat near the table, each of them eating some small cake-like confections, each with different flavours. Keith briefly looked down at Troy's Reuniclus.

"Is he always so nervous?" he asked.

"Kind of; Nate's squeamish around new people," Troy smiled. "It takes him a little while to get into the swing of a battle every time he participates, but he's actually quite a powerful guy once he's over his fright."

"I'm impressed; I thought Alexa's immediate family were the only ones who know their Pokémon inside and out," Keith said with a nervous smile.

"To be fair, though, you haven't met the rest of us, so that's not completely surprising," Troy said kindly. "But I can assure you we're all cut from the same cloth."

"Hm," Keith lowered his head and looked down at the little Pichu with a gentle smile; the cake she was eating left her with a dab of dark brown frosting on her nose and crumbs around her moth. "It's always good to know people treat their Pokémon kindly."

"You feeling all right?" Troy asked carefully. Keith sighed as he faced Troy, his smile having faded when their eyes met.

"Yeah, I think so."

"And, yet, you frown," Troy observed. Keith lowered his eyes, staring blankly at the dark cream liquid inside the white porcelain cup.

"Sorry."

"Hey, come on, you were within shouting distance of an annoyed father; that can't have been easy for you," Troy said gently. Keith's frown grew as he held onto his hot cup with both hands.

"It wasn't Hayden that bothered me."

"Uh?" Troy was confused.

"It was Alexa," Keith continued glumly. "Seeing that look on her face when I tried to embrace her like old times... I know I really crushed her that night...but I...I've never seen her make that face before...it was disheartening to say the least; to think I could've done that to someone I care about..." Troy smiled reassuringly.

"She arranged to meet you despite all of that; if anything, that says to me that she wants to at least try and work things out with you." Keith sighed lightly, causing Reese to look up at him, despite his mouth being stuffed with half of a minty green cake.

"...to be honest...it's making me nervous... The last time we had a proper conversation was...that night. I'm...a little on edge."

"I'm not surprised," Troy said quietly. "I'd bet Alexa's feeling the same way, even if she hides it from anyone that isn't Keenan or a Gardevoir." He smiled. "But try to stay positive; keep a cool head and you should be fine." Keith looked up at Troy with a cheerful grin. However, his grin suddenly turned into a frown after a brief flash of realisation.

"...I hope so..." Troy blinked in confusion. Reese frowned as he resumed eating his cake slowly, ignoring Ava and Robbie's laughter.

Lily was the first to walk into the bedroom, appearing a little hesitant, as Hayden quietly closed the door behind him.

"What's on your mind?" he asked.

"I was wondering...when do you plan on telling Alexa?" Lily asked reluctantly. Hayden looked at his wife in confusion.

"You mean about Harvey's proposition?" he questioned. A nod from Lily startled him. "Are you kidding me?! It's still too soon!" he snapped quietly, preventing Alexa and Keenan from overhearing. "Besides, this will be the first time she and Keith will be communicating properly since their fight," he continued, putting both hands on his hips. "Don't you think it can wait until they've conversed at least two or three times?"

"Why two or three?" Lily asked in confusion.

"Because telling her after the first time would still be premature," Hayden answered.

"And you're presuming they'll meet more than once..?"

"A problem like theirs isn't going to be resolved in one day, Lily," Hayden said, looking peculiarly annoyed. "I do plan to tell her about it, but now's not the time." Lily sighed silently, confusing Hayden.

"I'm sorry, Hayden. It's just..."

"Hm?"

"It's going to be hard to find the right time to tell her under these circumstances."

"You think I don't know that?!" Hayden exclaimed, startling Lily. She looked away from him sadly.

"...I'm not doubting you, Hayden...I'm...I'm just worried." Hayden took a deep breath and faced Lily remorsefully.

"...I know. I'm sorry, Lily; this current situation isn't easy for me either."

"I understand. I'm sorry, sweetheart...I shouldn't have asked," Lily apologised. Hayden smiled as he gently took hold of her hands, prompting her to face him in confusion.

"Hey, if you hadn't, I'd probably have forgotten by the time the best opportunity comes by." He carefully pulled Lily closer to him and gently placed his forehead against hers. "Thanks, Petal," he whispered lovingly. A monotonous ringing tone coming from Hayden's pocket ruined the tender atmosphere, annoying Hayden as he picked his mobile phone out of his pocket; Lily moved a little closer to Hayden as he wrapped his arm around his wife's waist while looking at the phone number ringing him.

"Who's that?" Lily asked as she placed both hands gently on Hayden's chest.

"Not a clue," he replied as he accepted the call and held the phone to his ear. "Thorndyke speaking."

Hailey and Colin quietly entered the kitchen, but Daniel spotted his parents straight away, alerting Daphne and Peggy of their presence at the same time.

"Mummy!"

"Feeling any better?" Daphne asked worriedly. Hailey wiped her already sore eyes gently as she smiled feebly at her.

"I'm sorry you had to see that, babies," she apologised; her voice sounded rather hoarse and dry.

"Don't apologise, it's not your fault," Daphne said comfortingly.

"Yeah, even grown ups can cry sometimes," Peggy added nicely.

"Blu, Blu!" Piper chirped in agreement.

"I think you should get some rest; you look drained," Daniel observed.

"That's what I said," Colin said gently. "But she wanted to come down and see you first, to see if you were all okay."

"We're okay, Mummy; just talking about Adelina."

"Blu..."

"I-I see," Hailey said shakily. "I bet you really hate her now..."

"Actually, we've established no such opinion," Daniel said casually. "We were debating what her motivation might have been."

"I don't think you kids should be worrying about it," Colin chuckled nervously. "It's a more complicated issue than you think."

"I'll say; if Daniel hadn't brought up Adelina's battling skills, I think my head would've started spinning faster than a Klinklang!" Daphne pouted.

"You opened up the floor for that subject, Daphne," Daniel chuckled. "But, seriously, I do recall Adelina being a strong battler."

"You're not far off," Hailey said gloomily. Daniel, Daphne and Peggy looked up at her in confusion. "Except...you've never seen her battle outside Pokémon Contests."

"What difference does that make?" Daphne asked in confusion.

"Well...it's almost like she's a completely different person when she battles outside a Contest," Hailey replied hesitantly.

"Different how?" Peggy asked with interest.

"Let's just say she's how Stephan got his scars," Colin answered pessimistically. "And that was because of Huey, the Pokémon she rarely calls upon for battle."

"If you face her strongest Pokémon... Actually, I've never seen her strongest Pokémon," Hailey said shamefully. "But I can only guess that facing him or her would be suicide; a Pokémon team – or any team, for that matter – is only as strong as its weakest link, and if Huey, being Adelina's weakest link, was strong enough to leave permanent scars on Stephan...I don't want to think about how much damage her strongest Pokémon can give..."

Harvery and Laddy glared at Adelina and Huey with mutual anger, while Adelina bit her lip in frustration as the orange-eyed Serperior and the pink Jellicent bounced off of one another and stared at one another angrily, panting heavily. Both Serperior and Jellicent were covered in various cuts and bruises, but Serperior was glowing in a light red hue and appeared to be in greater pain. Occasionally, a green aura would flicker around him in conjunction with the red aura.

"Hang in there, Vergil!" Harvey yelled encouragingly.

"Ser," Vergil panted.

"You're quite tenacious, aren't you, Harvey?" Adelina asked spitefully. "If I had known this was going to take so long, I wouldn't have accepted your challenge, darling," she sighed, flicking a lock of her hair from her face.

"You don't surrender, Adelina, I at least know that much about you," Harvey began. "What I don't understand is why you'd betray your best friend!"

"Normally, my retort would be it's nothing to do with you...but that would imply I've forgotten the family values you Thorndykes possess," Adelina said calmly, petting her beloved Delcatty. "Dolores, be a dear and finish this off quickly."

"Jelli!" Dolores nodded obediantly.

"That's what you said when the battle started," Harvey groaned. "Both of you. Vergil, stay alert!"

"Ser!" Vergil nodded compliantly.

"Dolores! Use Bind and toss that devilish serpent off of the bridge!" Adelina insisted firmly.

"Jell!" Dolores dashed towards Vergil and wrapped her lower tentacles around his neck. Using her main tentacles, Dolores spun around on the spot and tossed Vergil towards the ocean. Laddy panicked, but Harvey kept calm as Vergil wrapped his tail around the nearest pillar, saving him from diving into the ocean, which horrified Adelina and Dolores equally. The Serperior started to spin around the pillar, his slender body starting to wrap around it.

"Energy Ball!" Harvey shouted. Vergil opened his mouth, allowing green particles of light to gather and form a bright sphere that he then fired as soon as he met the Jellicent's gaze.

"LIII!" The sphere of energy crashed straight into Dolores, knocking her down in the process. Adelina was left in utter disbelief as her Jellicent fell in defeat. Vergil slithered off of the pillar and flopped onto the ground; he breathed heavily with his forked tongue sticking out of his mouth. Harvey ran over to his ally and knelt in front of him on one knee.

"Vergil, are you all right?!" he asked worriedly. Without moving his head, Vergil looked up at Harvey and smiled weakly.

"Perii..."

"Thank Arceus," Harvey smiled with relief. "But your injuries...she doesn't mess around," he said quietly, glancing back at Adelina, who had just returned her Jellicent to her Poké Ball.

"Aipom..." Harvey looked back at Vergil, holding his Poké Ball.

"You did great, buddy; I'll get you to a Pokémon Centre as soon as I can, okay?"

"Ser," Vergil nodded. "Ser...perior," he sighed with relief as the Poké Ball's light absorbed him into its sanctuary. Adelina approached Harvey as he stood up.

"My, my...I didn't expect your Serperior to pull off a stunt like that on his own," she said with bemusement. Harvey glanced back at her without facing her directly.

"Do you seriously think he's stupid enough to wait for me to tell him to save his skin?" Harvey asked rudely. "I don't know much about how other Trainers train their Pokémon, but the Thorndykes train theirs to utilise their own initiatives; they can dodge without us telling them to, as they should."

"Why, do you have a problem with Pokémon dodging attacks?" Adelina asked playfully.

"No; just the 'command' to dodge as a whole. Every time I hear a Trainer telling their Pokémon to dodge, I hear numerous variations of 'no shit' from the Pokémon. I know commanding your Pokémon to dodge really bothered my father at least."

"Oh, there's a pity...different strokes for different blokes, I suppose," Adelina grinned.

"Hm." Harvey turned around and faced Adelina directly. "In any case, are you going to tell me why you're harassing my little sister now?"

"Oh, Harvey, darling! You make me sound like a criminal!" Adelina complained, feigning her despair. She soon smirked and gently gripped Harvey's lower jaw, startling the man and his Aipom greatly. "Well...I guess I can let you in on a little secret," she said lustfully.

"What secret?" Harvey asked; he sounded as though part of him didn't want to find out. Adelina giggled as she moved her face closer to Harvey's, having to stand on her toes to reach it.

"If there's something I want...I get it," Adelina whispered seductively. Harvey stood perfectly still as she moved even closer to his ear; he didn't even dare to blink during the invasion of his personal space. "No. Matter. What." Adelina giggled again as she released her grip on Harvey's jaw and walked away from him, Huey following her faithfully. Laddy looked at the shaken up Harvey worriedly until he began to relax.

"T-That...doesn't really answer my question."

 _To be continued..._


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter Nineteen – Meetings**

The sun was shining brightly as Keith stood outside the iconic Gear Station, with Ava constantly touching Keith's treasured dog tags with her paw as he held the small Pichu in his arms. The black jacket he wore was only zipped up half way, revealing the burnt orange t-shirt underneath, with the jacket sleeves fashionably rolled up passed his elbows. The ends of his sapphire blue jeans nestled loosely over his grey and white trainers. Keith looked around curiously as he waited patiently for something, whistling casually as he did so. Ava herself looked fairly relaxed, if a little curious about the strange piece of jewellery hanging from Keith's neck. However, a loud and fiery roar echoed through the sky, causing Ava to squeal with fright as she inadvertently shocked Keith with her electricity, messing his previously tidy hairdo again. Keith and Ava looked around until they saw a large winged shadow flying over them and proceeding to land in front of them; the glare they were met with sent shivers down their spine. Phoenix stood tall and firm as he stared resentfully at the crimson-haired boy, a pair of virtually naked arms wrapped around his neck from behind and a pair of black boots wrapped around his stomach.

"Sorry," Alexa apologised nervously as the arms and legs disappeared behind the Charizard's being. Hearing Alexa's voice brought very slight relief to Keith as he finally began using his right hand to hastily tidy his hair. "I overslept."

"I-It's okay," Keith replied shakily. "It's not 10am just yet." It wasn't until Phoenix disappeared into the sanctuary of his Poké Ball that Keith finally saw Alexa herself; he was surprised to see her exposing more flesh than he was accustomed to with her attire consisting of a grass green crop top and dark blue denim shorts. "Uh...is your Dad okay with you dressing like that?"

"What, would you rather I take fashion advice from Cain instead?" Alexa asked rudely as a very shaky and giddy Jollie and Pachirisu made their way onto each of her shoulders. The Pachirisu had a V-shaped cut on the very top of his right ear. Alexa sighed as she placed Phoenix's Poké Ball back inside the terracotta brown belt bag around her shorts. "Sorry...I've been so nervous about this meeting, I hardly slept..."

"No...I'm sorry for being nosy," Keith said shyly. "It's just...I've...I-I know I've seen you in shorts before, but I've not seen you wearing anything that reveals your-"

"My Dad doesn't mind."

"Huh?"

"My clothes," Alexa continued. "It's only going to get warmer in Unova anyway, so...yeah." Keith could tell she still felt uncomfortable around him, reigniting his guilt all over again.

"Is that your Pachirisu?" he asked suddenly, hoping to relieve at least some of the tense air around him and Alexa. Alexa smiled at the Electric Squirrel Pokémon as she stroked his head.

"Yeah, this is Chutney," she said politely. "I thought it'd be nice for Ava to make friends with a fellow electric rodent Pokémon."

"Chippa!" Chutney greeted as he raised a paw into the air. Ava spotted the optimistic Pachirisu and blushed as she buried herself in Keith's arms.

"P-Piii..." Jollie gave Chutney a sly grin.

"Bun-neary~!" Chutney returned the Buneary's cocky grin.

"Pachi~!" Jollie huffed as she pouted and looked away from the Pachirisu.

"Looks like Jollie's grown up a little since I last saw her," Keith observed.

"Yeah, she has," Alexa said awkwardly. Keith bashfully looked away from Alexa and avoided eye contact with her for a few moments. As Alexa did the same thing, Jollie tapped her Trainer's shoulder and pointed to the large analogue clock built into the top of the train station, prompting Alexa to look at the time. "It's about one minute to ten...we should get going."

"Y-yeah," Keith agreed nervously as the two teens finally made their way inside the train station, avoiding eye contact throughout the entire trek.

The forest was as breathtakingly beautiful as ever; the sun's warming radiance seeped through the many trees that stood firmly and almost proudly, adding to the forest's overall feeling of tranquillity. The grass and many bushes were as vibrant and fresh as expected, and the river flowing through looked clear and calm. Hayden and Harvey walked through this wonderful scene, Tiffany walking alongside Hayden and Laddy sitting comfortably on Harvey's shoulder.

"Jonathan Gulliver contacted me yesterday," Hayden said casually.

"The XCommunications CEO?" Harvey inquired.

"Yeah, that's the guy," Hayden nodded, his smile growing a little wider. "We've finally arranged a meeting time and place to discuss the possibility of having Xcommunications stores in my department stores." Harvey's feeble smile hadn't escaped his notice, causing him to look concerned.

"Wow, that's...great, bro...happy for ya."

"What happened?" Hayden asked gently. Harvey sighed.

"I spoke to Naomi," he said quickly. Hayden held onto his brother's arm, causing the pair to stop walking.

"What did she say?" Hayden asked worriedly as his Liepard approached him in bewilderment as to why he suddenly stopped.

"That's what's bugging me," Harvey confessed. "I told her I only went ahead with the divorce because it was what she wanted; turns out she didn't even have the slightest inkling."

"Don't tell me you lost your temper with her."

"I was annoyed, sure, but...I was...crushed, more than anything," Harvey said sadly. "I ended up telling her the truth in the bluntest way I could."

"How did she take it?" Hayden asked with worry.

"Hell if I know; I walked out of there the millisecond I finished the sentence," Harvey said glumly. "Still," he sighed, tightening his deep brown ponytail. "I don't regret that as much as battling Adelina not long after I left."

"You what?"

"Yeah, Laddy and I met up with her and Huey on Driftveil Drawbridge after we met Naomi," he explained.

"But why would you battle her?! More to the point, why didn't you say something about it sooner?!" Hayden said, almost sounding panicky.

"I dunno, I...I had a lot on my mind, Hailey has a lot on hers and I know you had your hands full with Alexa's problems...mine seem like a dead Ponyta by comparison..."

"Hey, don't go falling into Hailey's downward spiral!" Hayden said firmly. "What exactly happened to warrant your battle with her anyway?"

"She said she'd tell me why she's tormenting Hailey if I defeated her in a one-on-one battle; Vergil defeated Dolores in the end, despite ending up with horrific burns that are still healing, but she was still cryptic."

"What did she say?"

"Just that if there's something she wants, she gets it no matter what," Harvey replied, trying not to remember the almost seductive tone of voice the enigmatic woman used against him.

"But that doesn't answer your question, though, does it?"

"I said exactly the same thing after she left," Harvey complained. "Sorry...I thought I could get some clear answers from her."

"Hey, the fact that Vergil's still alive is an accomplishment in itself; I mean, let's face it, he's as old as Dad's youngest Pokémon, and even Brandy's getting on in years," Hayden said cheerfully. Harvey chuckled.

"Yeah...I knew Frankie or Dakota would've been better suited to battle that pompous Jellicent of hers..."

"Frankie? He'd rather take her to the dance floor!" Hayden laughed. "But, seriously, don't get worked up over Adelina; Hailey's our priority in this situation, not her. And don't worry about Naomi either; just give her time to process what you told her and maybe try talking to her again in about a week or two unless she calls you first."

"Yeah...I need to put all of my energy into helping our baby sister anyway," Harvey nodded. He grinned widely as he ruffled Hayden's hair. "Thanks! I needed that!" Hayden laughed nervously as he neatened his messy hair.

"Sure. But...warn me next time you do that."

"Why? It'd be a lot less fun if I did!" Harvey teased. The two brothers resumed their journey through the forest; Harvey looked as cheerful and relaxed as usual, thanks to his brother's counselling, but Hayden still appeared troubled; it suddenly dawned on him that most of his family was undergoing some kind of turmoil. At least, that was how he felt.

Keith and Alexa sat opposite one another in the train car as it sped along the tracks, swiftly passing through the Unovan countryside that Chutney, Jollie and Ava seemed to be admiring. Keith and Alexa, however, still avoided eye contact with one another, with Keith staring at the table between him and Alexa, while she looked up at the ceiling.

"...I...I've been meaning to ask..."

"Hm?" Keith looked towards Alexa in confusion.

"Where're Robbie and Reese? I noticed their absence as soon as I saw you."

"About that... Actually, I didn't sleep very well last night either," Keith admitted. "All of us were pretty much up at the crack of dawn, so we went to Troy's Daycare Centre after his Mom told me about it before I left; that's where they are now."

"Troy's Daycare?" Alexa queried. "But...how did you get to Gear Station before I did? I mean, it's quite a trek between Route 3 and Nimbasa City..."

"It was for Robbie, at least; he galloped all the way to the Daycare Centre, which in itself took, like, two hours...but his Beheeyem took us back to Nimbasa with Teleport, so we were good; had enough time for breakfast as well!"

"Yeah...Miranda's good like that...but...Xavier...he's been there since we all arrived in Unova; he's visiting his parents," Alexa stated. "Did you see him at all?" Keith suddenly turned glum.

"And the many daggers he glared at me, yeah," he replied half-heartedly. "I didn't even know he was there...or why he was there to begin with..."

"Like I said, he's visiting his parents," Alexa said feebly. "I'm...I'm sorry Xavier made you feel uncomfortable..."

"I don't blame him, though..." He suddenly watched Alexa in bemusement as she shuffled blindly through her belt bag, finally pulling out a small white plastic carrier bag that seemed to jingle as she passed it towards him.

"Here; I got this for you two days ago," Alexa said kindly. Keith curiously placed his hand inside the bag and pulled out the Soothe Bell. He examined the gift with both hands; he felt the silky smooth fabric that was the dull cyan ribbon with one hand and held the brown necklace cord on his other hand, noticing the cord used a lobster claw clasp to clip the Soothe Bell around a Pokémon's neck.

"It's...a bell?"

"A Soothe Bell," Alexa explained. "I bought it for Ava." Keith managed to crack a smile at the gift.

"Thanks, Alexa." He looked towards the awestruck Pichu. "Ava, c'mere a sec."

"Pichu!" Ava walked over to Keith obediently and sat down in front of him. Carefully, Keith slowly turned Ava around, making her back face him as he placed the Soothe Bell around Ava's neck. The little Pichu looked down at the strange ribbon that now hung from her neck in perplexity. Alexa smiled a little as she found that the accessory suited Ava well, though she turned her line of sight away from Keith and his happy rodent, turning it towards the window and the spectacular view Chutney and Jollie were admiring. Keith looked towards her, hoping to express more gratitude, but noticed her attention was diverted from him, causing him to feel slightly disheartened; he should have known that she wouldn't feel comfortable around him so soon.

Lily and Keenan walked casually into the large museum, Iara on Keenan's shoulders and Cheryl at Lily's side. The first thing they saw upon entering the museum was the central display of a skeletal Dragonite. Both Cheryl and Iara looked up at it with fascination as Lily and Keenan approached and admired it.

"It's kind of interesting to see fossils like this," Keenan stated.

"Kind of?" inquired Lily.

"Well, it does give us a clearer understanding of a Pokémon's anatomy, but...if Rena saw this, I really don't know how she'd react."

"Por, Poreon," Iara said teasingly.

"Oh, come on, Iara, Rena's sense of vanity isn't that high," Keenan chuckled.

"If anything, I reckon it would unnerve her," Lily guessed. "Possibly, at least..."

"I guess Uncle Harvey would need to bring her here and find out for himself," Keenan said as he walked over towards the fossilised Armaldo. However, he saw something through the corner of his eye that caught his attention, which prompted him to approach it; he saw a black sphere of some sort that almost looked like a capsule, even though it looked nothing like a Poké Ball. Curious, Lily and Cheryl approached him.

"What's that, sweetie?" Lily asked; Keenan looked up at his mother with a sly smile, knowing she was quizzing him.

"It's the Dark Stone," Keenan replied as he looked down at the object displayed in front of him. "It's said to be the dormant state of a Pokémon called Zekrom, a legendary Dragon Pokémon from Unova lore; Zekrom, along with its twin, Reshiram, used to be one single Pokémon until the twin heroes, who wanted to use the single entity's power to build Unova, started to dispute and fought. Consequently, the two dragons that resulted from the dispute, Reshiram and Zekrom, took sides; Reshiram, the Vast White Dragon Pokémon, sided with the older brother who sought truth, while Zekrom, the Deep Black Dragon Pokémon, sided with the younger who sought ideals. At least...that's what Alex told me once..."

"Full marks for demonstrating applied knowledge," Lily praised as she herself admired the fake Dark Stone. "Did she tell you anything else?"

"Yeah, Reshiram and Zekrom are actually part of a trio, not a duo; the "husk" that got left behind when the single Dragon Pokémon split into Reshiram and Zekrom became the third Dragon of the trio, Kyurem," Keenan explained. "I think Alex said that Kyurem is rumoured to eat people at night, but she doesn't believe that..."

"That's the Lacunosa lore if I'm not mistaken," Lily pondered. "Does Alexa not believe it because she hates the idea of a Pokémon eating humans?"

"I don't think she put it like that; she said she doesn't believe it because there's no actual evidence to suggest Kyurem snatched and ate people, other than the Lacunosa Lore itself at least," Keenan replied. "Though I wouldn't put it passed her to hate the concept as well, if only for outlandish it sounds."

"I wouldn't either," Lily chuckled as a large group of teen-aged school students entered the museum with several adults. The students all wore the same clothing; the girls seemed to be wearing slate grey blazers, white blouses, grass green ties, plain grey skirts that barely cover their knees, matching grey socks that go up to their knees and respectable black shoes, while the boys wore the same blazers and ties, white shirts, grey trousers and equally reputable black shoes. Each student had an ID card clipped onto their trousers and skirts, while the teachers that accompanied them wore their ID cards around their necks. "But, looking at that...I have to wonder where those Dragon Pokémon are right now..."

"Hopefully somewhere safe," Keenan answered as two of the school students made their way over to him and Lily. "I know Alex would hope for the same thing; she truly hates the idea of humans disturbing legendary Pokémon."

"Is that because some guy tried to kill Regigigas?" Daphne asked with interest. Slightly startled, Lily and Keenan looked back at the twins.

"Oh, hi! I thought you'd be stuck in Striaton!" Keenan said nervously.

"Admittedly, so did we," Daniel replied. "To tell you the truth, this visit was thrown together at the last minute, or so Mr Hardy said."

"But every cloud has a silver lining!" Daphne said cheerfully.

"Yes, it does," Lily agreed. "And, to answer your earlier question, it wasn't because of what happened with Regigigas in Almia; Alexa felt like that for as long as I can remember, once she was introduced to legendary Pokémon, at least."

"It's a wonder how she and Uncle Hayden made it out of there alive," Daniel said rashly. Keenan gave his cousin an annoyed look.

"The important thing is it's all over now," Lily said optimistically.

"Indeed, but there's another problem afoot," Daniel stated.

"What now?" Keenan asked with frustration. Iara patted his shoulder with her paw.

"It's still Adelina; Daphne, Peggy and I had a discussion about why she's bothering Mum so much," Daniel said on a very slightly more sympathetic note.

"Yeah, we still can't get to the bottom of what Adelina's motivation is," Daphne said despondently.

"How is your mother doing anyway?" Lily asked delicately.

"Right now, it doesn't look good," Daniel answered earnestly. "She didn't sleep that well last night after yesterday's visit."

"Oh, dear..."

"It gets worse, Aunt Lily," Daphne cautioned.

"Oh?"

"Mum told us about Adelina's battling skills, or what she knows of them," Daniel continued. "Are you familiar with the phrase "a team is only as strong as its weakest link"?"

"Absolutely," Lily replied.

"So you're saying Adelina's weakest link is actually very powerful?" Keenan questioned.

"Pretty much," Daniel nodded. "But that weakest link happens to be Huey."

"Huey? That's odd; he doesn't strike me as the battling type," Lily mused. "He appeared to be so docile and domesticated."

"Looks are deceptive. But the scary part is...Mum doesn't know who or what Adelina's strongest Pokémon is, which is scarier when you consider that it was Huey who left Dad's Magmortar with his scars," Daniel elaborated.

"Huey left those scars!?" Keenan exclaimed in disbelief.

"And if Adelina's weakest Pokémon can leave such ugly scars...then facing her strongest is practically suicide, or so Mum said herself," Daphne said worriedly.

"We thought you should know the next time we met," Daniel said considerately. "If you can pass it on to Uncle Hayden and Alexa, that'd help."

"Just tell them yourself; you have their Xtransceiver numbers," Keenan said grumpily. "But thanks for the warning."

Troy placed two identical bowls of Pokémon food in front of Robbie and Reese, who were lying contently on the soft green grass of a fenced paddock. As the two Pokémon began to eat the food, Troy walked away from them and looked around him and smiled. Many Pokémon resided in the paddock, all doing differing activities; among the many Pokémon were a couple of Pikachu playfully chasing a merry Dedenne, a Luxio snuggling with a shaggy Furfrou that looked down at his companion lovingly, a duelling Pawniard and Sneasel, a quartet of swimming Ducklett in the nearby pond, a meditating Hariyama and a Zoroark joyfully conversing with a Ninetales and a shirtless youth with black and red hair tied with a green band. Troy exhaled as he wiped the sweat from his forehead with his arm, proceeding to take off his vest; a black tattoo of what looked like a tribal Salamence head could be seen on his right pectoral. He tossed the discarded vest towards the fence as Adelina, clad in a simple white blouse, black miniskirt and high heeled shoes, approached it with her trusty Delcatty.

"Oh, I'm flattered, darling, but I'm way out of your league," Adelina suddenly remarked flirtatiously. As he heard the distinguishing voice of his aunt's supposed friend, Troy groaned as he confronted the bronze-haired woman.

"You're right; you're too old for a start," he retorted wittily. Huey hissed angrily at the boy, but Adelina merely giggled.

"Touché." Adelina leaned her arms against the fence, almost looming her face closer to Troy's. "So...how's the family?"

"I didn't think you cared," Troy said nastily. "What, with you having brought my aunt to the brink of depression and all..."

"Depression? Dear me, you make me sound like a disease," Adelina laughed. The youth, Zoroark and Ninetales turned to look at Troy's conversation with Adelina, revealing the boy's blue eyes, very slight stubble and X-shaped pendant; the Pokémon were confused, but the boy raised an eyebrow.

"You are," Troy said rudely. "Or, at least, might as well be; what kind of person hurts their friend when they're down?"

"I'm not going to coddle a guilty person," Adelina said simply, looking at her perfect manicure.

"Whoever said Aunt Hailey's guilty of anything?" Troy asked with frustration. The youth excused himself from his group, stood up and made his way over to Troy.

"Everything was fine until Hailey and Eric-"

"Yo, Troy," Xavier greeted suddenly as he approached the frustrated Breeder. "Is this lady bothering you?" Troy gave Xavier a look of resignation.

"Pretty much." Adelina's smirk grew as she admired Xavier's abdomen.

"Oooh...are you boys subconsciously trying to woo me?" she asked rascally. Xavier glared at Adelina.

"Oi, that's enough outta you, lady," he scolded calmly. "If you're just gonna cause trouble, it's best you moved along. Skedaddle." Adelina laughed.

"If you say so, handsome," she complied amorously. "It's latte time anyway. Come along, Huey!"

"Reow," Huey nodded obediently as he faithfully followed his Trainer, walking away from the fence. Troy sighed as he placed his hand on his forehead.

"That's the one giving Hailey grief?" Xavier asked as he saw Adelina disappearing towards Nacrene City. "I can see why she's so downtrodden."

"Thanks for the help," Troy smiled as he lowered his arm.

"No probs," Xavier said happily. "But I really hope Hailey gets better soon."

"You should be more worried about Alexa," Troy suggested. Xavier snarled as a black aura momentarily flickered across his body.

"I still can't believe that bastard...!"

"Whoa, easy, Xavier!"

"I'm sorry, but I was under the impression that he loved her! Why would anyone hurt someone you love?!" The Zoroark, whose mane was dominantly red and contained a jade green bangle near the bottom of her ponytail, ran over to Xavier and held him softly as the Ninetales casually walked over to the conversation.

"Zorrr..." Xavier sighed as he held one hand over the Zoroark's claws.

"Sorry, Mom...I'm just...so angry!"

"So was I at first," Troy said reassuringly. "After he finished accusing me of being her new boyfriend, I heard his side of the story and now I'm hoping they'll work things out."

"You sure she wouldn't be better off without him?" Xavier asked openly.

"Zorrr," Zoroark said gently in a loving motherly voice. "Zorroarr..."

"Perri's right; we can't make that decision for her," Troy said peacefully.

"Ninetales," Ninetales nodded in complete agreement. "Ninetales."

"Michael's right about that; no matter what the outcome is, it's for Alexa to decide. But try to go easy on Keith as well; this bad blood isn't easy for him either." Xavier looked away from Troy in thought as he used a finger to lightly scratch the side of his head; he began to wonder if he acted unfairly towards Keith in spite of him having hurt Alexa emotionally.

Keith sat in front of a small squared coffee table as Alexa placed two identical glasses of freshly brewed cocoa down; one in front of Keith, the other in front of the seat she intended to occupy, which was directly in front of Keith's. Ava, Chutney and Jollie sat on the carpet not too far from Keith and Alexa, with a plate of many different coloured cakes in the middle of them; Jollie playfully handed Chutney one of the orange cakes, to which the Pachirisu pushed away from him, clearly expressing his disgust over the confection, much to Ava's amusement. The coffee shop Keith and Alexa sat in was, as Alexa herself had previously stated, was extremely quiet. There were possibly only three other customers in the entire shop, all of whom sat in drastically different places in the shop, though doing nearly the exact same things; two of them were reading different newspapers over a coffee whilst the third was on a slim black laptop with a cup of coffee and a bagel next to him. Alexa kept her eyes away from Keith as she sat down in front of him, causing Keith to nervously look away from her. After a few moments of awkward silence, Keith sighed quietly.

"I'm...I'm sorry about concussing you," he apologised timidly as Alexa drank from her hot mug of cocoa.

"It's okay; I was at fault as well," she mumbled shyly. "I wasn't looking where I was going." Alexa took another sip of her cocoa as Keith tightly gripped his jeans at the knees out of anxiety; he waited for Alexa to return her mug to the table before he spoke up again.

"How...h-how have you been since...since that night?" he asked shakily. Alexa held onto both of her arms, though it provided little to no comfort.

"Hurt," she said simply, her voice starting to crack.

"I-I know...and I'm...I'm sorry," Keith said regretfully.

"I mean..." Alexa held one hand over her eyes, shielding them from Keith's view. "...how could you say that to me..?!" It was clear Alexa was fighting to retain her waning calm temperament; she even began to shiver slightly.

"...I wasn't thinking. Again," Keith said pessimistically, recalling a different argument he and Alexa had previously. "I thought I'd learned my lesson after Keenan vanished, but..." Keith held his hand over his own eyes, deeply ashamed of himself. "I lost my temper and I took my stress and frustration out on you again...I...I can't apologise enough..."

"...y-you didn't have to say that, though...!" Alexa said in a highly distressed whimper.

"I realised that the millisecond I stopped raging..." Keith lowered his hand and looked at Alexa sadly; despite how sorrowful she looked, a part of Keith was relieved that he hadn't seen a single tear fall down her face. "I'm really sorry, Alexa; I was angry with how that last mission went – before, during and after – and I was furious...but..." He looked away from her, heartache written all of his face. "I didn't mean to hurt you..." Alexa took a few quivering breaths in an attempt to calm herself down. "But I did...and I'm sorry... I love you...and...you don't hurt the people you love..." Keith became even more anxious when he noticed Alexa was sitting in absolute silence; she wasn't even breathing loudly. "Alexa..."

"You were right," she said dejectedly. The three Pokémon looked up at the heart to heart conversation expectantly as they ceased eating.

"What?"

"You were right," Alexa said again. "...that's...that's why it hurt me so much..." She lowered her hand from her eyes.

"No," Keith insisted instantly. "No, I was wrong; I shouldn't have said-"

"All I'm good for is getting into trouble," Alexa said forlornly as she very slightly raised her head to face Keith; he was almost mortified to see how soulless her usually vivid fuchsia eyes were. "...no, you were right; our mission to stop Jordan proved that all over again..." Keith grew increasingly depressed; he was witnessing the damage he caused to Alexa's psyche first hand, and it crushed him deeply.

"Alexa, you ARE a good Ranger – a great one even!" he exclaimed desperately. "Everything I said that night was meaningless, it-"

"Felt pretty meaningful to me," Alexa said cynically.

"Alexa, I'm sorry! I wish I hadn't said anything! Really, I do! I-I didn't mean any of it! Please, Alexa...you have to believe me...!" Despite him being able to see her eyes, it was obvious they weren't focused on him.

"...I...I don't know if I can..." Keith was aghast and devastated; this was the first time Alexa had implied that she had lost all faith in him since their friendship sprouted at Almia's Ranger School. Jollie was highly upset with Alexa's dying faith and Ava was overwhelmed by the saddening aura around Keith and Alexa. Chutney, however, turned his attention to Keith, smiling joyfully as he awaited the boy's next response.

"Hailey, we can't stress this enough; none of what happened was your fault," Hayden said carefully as he faced his depressed sister. He and Harvey sat on either side of Hailey at her kitchen table, with Colin sitting directly in front of her, his Phantump hovering over his shoulder.

"If you say so," Hailey said submissively.

"Honeybee..."

"We do say so," Harvey nodded. "Now, Adelina's just mad because the Contest got cancelled, acting like a little baby who threw her toys out of the pushchair; there's no reason for you to let her get you down."

"Hm."

"I'm sorry about this, guys, she's been more depressed than usual since I proposed Adelina was hurting her deliberately," Colin apologised.

"Phantump..."

"It's okay, you thought you were doing the right thing," Hayden said kindly. Much to the astonishment of her husband and brothers, Hailey suddenly stood up from the kitchen table.

"I can't believe that...I need to talk to her."

"After everything she's done to you?!" Colin asked in horror as he stood up. "Why would you even consider it?!"

"I need to know the truth and it has to come directly from the Ponyta's mouth!" Hailey insisted as she began to make her way out of the kitchen. In a panic, Colin, Harvey and Hayden followed her swiftly.

"That-that's what I tried to do when we bumped into one another," Harvey said quickly. "Vergil and I battled her and Dolores hoping to get some sort of answer, but all that came out of it was a badly burned Serperior!"

"Yeah, well, I'm not so stupid as to seek answers through a battle and driving my Pokémon to suicide!" Hailey yelled anxiously. Her sudden rudeness alarmed Colin, Harvey and Hayden. "I'm going to find out the old fashioned way; through talking!" she shouted as she fled the household. Harvey and Hayden rushed out of the house and pursued their sister, but Colin delayed in favour of locking the front door behind him.

"Hailey, wait!" Hayden called loudly.

Inside the museum, Lily, Keenan, Daphne and Daniel all heard Hayden calling out to Hailey and looked at the open doorway just in time to see Hailey running by with determination.

"What's gotten Mum so fired up?" Daphne asked.

"I don't like it," Keenan said suspiciously.

"Me neither," Daniel corroborated. Without another word, Lily and Keenan made their way out of the museum with Cheryl, Iara and the twins.

Harvey, Hayden and Colin ran after Hailey, who spotted Adelina sitting at one of the outdoor tables of the café residing next door to the museum. Hailey, her brothers and husband approached the café table as Lily, Keenan, the twins and Pokémon exited the museum and witnessed Hailey's confrontation.

"Adelina, we need to talk!" she said insistently. With her tall latte glass in hand, Adelina looked down at her friend with displeasure.

"Do you mind? I'm in the middle of my latte," she said frustratingly before taking another delightful sip of her coffee. Huey lay next to Adelina, modestly munching away at a piece of dark brown iced cake.

"Is it true that you're hurting my feelings deliberately?!" Hailey asked accusingly.

"Is that what this is about?" Lily asked in wonder. Hailey, Colin, Harvey and Hayden all looked back at her, spotting Keenan and the twins at the same time.

"Lily! Keenan! Fancy seeing you here," Hayden said nervously.

"What're you doing here, guys? You should be in school," Colin observed.

"That's what I said to Mr Hardy," Daniel sighed, rolling his eyes.

"What's going on?" Daphne asked worriedly.

"What it looks like," Harvey said apprehensively as he, Colin and Hayden looked back at Hailey, who was glaring angrily at the annoyed Adelina.

"Is it true or not?!"

"You're interrupting my critical Latte Time for such a pointless interrogation? What a waste of time," Adelina huffed as she drank more of her cherished coffee.

"If you would just answer me, then this would be all over quicker than you can bat an eyelid," Hailey said restlessly. Adelina drank the last of her coffee at the same time Huey finished the final piece of the cake slice.

"We're done here. Come along, Huey," Adelina said as she and her Delcatty got up and left the table. Everyone watched as the pair approached Hailey. "Oh, and uh...as much as I adore the attention, darlings," she began, smirking at everyone in the gathered audience, Pokémon included. "I have no idea what you're talking about," she said innocently as she began to leave. As she was passing Hayden, she seductively, slowly and lightly pressed her fingers against Hayden's chest and brushed her hand up to and across his shoulder, heavily spiting a now livid Lily. Hayden blinked in total confusion.

"...can someone...tell me what just happened...?"

"She can get away with pulling out erotic gestures with me, but it's a bad idea to pull something like that off with a married man," Harvey said, glancing at the infuriated Lily. "Especially with his wife in the vicinity." Keenan kept his watchful eye on the exiting Adelina. Iara was perplexed, but Keenan was highly incredulous and began to wonder what the antagonising woman was truly up to...and why she feigned innocence.

 _To be continued..._


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter Twenty - Deliberation**

"Say that again," Keith said firmly, having recovered from his disbelief. Alexa was startled, though she continued to keep her gaze away from Keith as she took her lukewarm mug of cocoa in both hands.

"Why?" she asked before proceeding to sip the chocolatey beverage.

"Humour me," Keith replied cryptically. After returning the mug to the table, Alexa sighed.

"I-"

"No. Look me in the eye and say it again," Keith insisted. Chutney, Jollie and the still teary Ava watched with intrigue as Alexa gradually shifted her line of sight towards Keith's. She took a breath in preparation to speak up, but, as soon as she met with Keith's soft brown eyes, she halted her words before she could even utter a syllable; she simply stared at his eyes with perplexity.

"...uh..."

"You can't say it again, can you?" Keith asked sternly, starting to feel more annoyed than despondent. "Is there a reason why?"

"I-I..." Keith took a drink from his mug as he waited for Alexa to give him a proper response. However, he felt even more annoyed when he placed his mug back onto the table; Alexa had remained silent the entire time.

"Come on, Alexa, it's not rocket science for you, is it?" he questioned interrogatively. "I know you can tell when someone's telling the truth or not, so...why are you being like this over my apology?"

"I, uh..." Alexa looked away from Keith quickly, starting to feel panicky. Keith blinked in disbelief.

"You don't want to believe me, do you?!" he asked accusingly. Alexa faced him in confusion, only to see the frustration in his eyes. "Why else would you not look me in the eye?! You can tell if someone's telling the truth or not by looking at them, yet you've hardly looked at me all morning! Look, I understand I'm not exactly the best person in the world to you right now, but it's not like looking at me will turn you to stone or something!" Alexa looked away from Keith once again, but out of shame. "I've done nothing but tell you the truth since we sat down, but you should have been able to tell that from the start! So why don't you want to believe me?! Is there something you're scared of? ...is it that you're scared to believe me?!" Feeling stressed, Alexa suddenly took hold of her mug and drank the rest of its contents quickly as she stood up, her actions alarming Keith.

"I should have known this was a bad idea," she said breathlessly as she almost slammed her mug back onto the table before striding away. "Chutney, Jollie, we're leaving."

"Bun!" Jollie ran after Alexa frenziedly. Chutney stashed his unfinished cake into his bushy tail before running after his ally. Keith hastily consumed the last of his beverage before giving chase with Ava, who carried her half-eaten cake in her mouth.

"Alexa, wait!"

"What happens now?" Colin asked openly as he, Harvey, Hayden, Lily and Hailey stood near the Nacrene Café. Colin had his arm around the shoulders of his increasingly stressed wife, though his attention was subconsciously fixated on Harvey.

"Hell if I know," Harvey replied, scratching his head. "That woman is such an enigma."

"There was nothing enigmatic about what she was doing, Harvey," Lily said scornfully.

"Lily, calm down, it's-" Lily looked towards her nervous husband angrily.

"Don't finish that sentence! She was like a Malamar playing with its food!"

"Isn't that taking it a little bit too far, Lily?" Colin asked timidly.

"I don't know nor care; I just want to know what she was playing at," Lily said nastily.

"I don't know why she did it either, but if it's making you this frustrated, then that means she's getting to you, and you can't let that happen," Harvey said calmly. Laddy nodded in agreement. Lily sighed and fiddled with a thin strand of her honey brown hair.

"I'm sorry..." Hayden approached Lily and proceeded to give her a hug, which Lily returned all too happily.

"Don't be, I understand your anger."

"Still...it was interesting to see that you can still attract the ladies, eh, bro?" Harvey said teasingly, much to the annoyance of Hayden and Lily alike.

"Not the time, Harvey!" Hayden cautioned. Harvey laughed sheepishly.

"Nah, you're right... Sorry; I was trying to lighten the mood..."

"Perhaps a different joke would have sufficed?" Colin asked rudely. Hailey ran her fingers through her bleach blonde hair anxiously.

"She's definitely lying," Keenan said with complete certainty. "I had my suspicions before, but now I know for sure."

"I agree," Daniel nodded. "Her behaviour today certainly brings her credibility into question...why would she deny any form of accusation thrown her way and then proceed to physically flirt with Uncle Hayden?"

"For the heck of it?" Daphne questioned. "You saw how Aunt Lily reacted."  
"Yeah, but why would Adelina get such a reaction for the heck of it?" Daniel asked. "She's certainly behaving strangely for someone who continuously proclaims their innocence."

"Exactly, but now I know she isn't," Keenan stated firmly. "But I don't know what she's exactly guilty of..."

"Daphne and I couldn't figure that out either, so don't feel bad about it," Daniel said with slight reassurance. "But I think we can all agree that we should stay alert from now on."

"Seeing how potentially dangerous she can be, I have to agree with Daniel."

"Same," Keenan agreed as he lifted his left arm up and proceeded to contact two different numbers in his contact list. "I'll let Alex and Troy know about what just happened."

"Good idea," Daphne smiled. Daniel nodded in agreement as Keenan waited both Xtransceiver numbers to pick up his pending communication.

Alexa made her way onto the bridge over the single railway track, with Jollie and Chutney following closely behind her. Ava and Keith ran after the three of them, Keith gently grabbing Alexa's hand as soon as he caught up to her.

"Alexa, wait up! I'm sorry I made things worse in there, but I really want to know if you actually believe me or not!"

"This was such a bad idea," Alexa said glumly as she pulled her hand away from Keith's.

"Alexa, I know this is a scary thing for you – I'd be lying if I said I wasn't scared of this meeting myself – but we can't walk away from it on a bad note! What's the point in trying to work things out between us if you're running away at the first hurdle?"

"You're right...it's just...nerves, I guess..."

"...I understand; that night started off with me being as annoyed as I was in the coffee shop," Keith said sadly. "...I'm sorry; I wasn't thinking that you'd be so skittish... But it's okay, you don't need to be scared; I want to work things out as much as you do...even if it means we call it quits and never see each other again."

"You don't mean that," Alexa said quickly, turning around to face him. "That's not what you want." Keith frowned.

"You're right; it isn't what I want...but I'll understand if it's what you want." Chutney was the only Pokémon smiling merrily at the sombre conversation between the teens while Ava was the only one on the verge of bawling her eyes out. Jollie, however, pulled up a small part of her light cream fleece and clenched it nervously in her paws as she observed the exchange.

"But I-" Before Alexa could fully answer Keith, her Xtransceiver suddenly rang with a calming jazz tune. "Hm?"

"What the heck?" Alexa raised her arm and looked at her Xtransceiver.

"It's Keenan," she replied as she accepted the incoming call. As Keenan's face appeared on the central screen, she was taken slightly aback to see a second screen shooting out of the Xtransceiver's left hand side; Troy's face appeared on the secondary screen milliseconds later. "Troy?!"

"Yo, Alexa!" Troy laughed. "Didn't expect to see you in this chat!"

"Yeah, no kidding," Alexa replied shyly. "Listen, this isn't a good time for me, is this important?"

"I'd say so," Keenan confirmed. "We encountered Adelina."

"What?! In Nacrene?!" Alexa asked in horror. "Why does that woman always go wherever this family ends up?" Keith blinked in confusion as a calmer Ava wolfed her cake down.

"Aside from the obvious fact that Aunt Hailey lives in Nacrene, you mean?" Troy asked jokingly.

"She was at the café next to the museum," Keenan explained.

"So, what, she was having a coffee or something? Sorry, but how does that-"

"That's what I want to tell you both," Keenan said abruptly. "Aunt Hailey tried to get a straight answer from her, but got nothing."

"So Adelina denied everything Aunt Hailey asked her about?" Alexa questioned.

"Yeah, she said she didn't know what Aunt Hailey was talking about," Keenan replied.

"That's hardly surprising; people don't want to get into trouble," Troy said casually. "Yet people commit crimes...weird, huh?"

"Except I now know for sure that Adelina's lying through her teeth," Keenan said firmly.

"You mean her fangs; I've seen how flirtatious she can be," Troy said grumpily.

"What do you mean, Troy?" Alexa asked in confusion.

"I had the "pleasure" of her company for a little while; she cunningly didn't speak up until my vest came off."

"Does that really even matter?" Alexa asked, raising an eyebrow. "A flirtatious attitude doesn't usually correlate with-"

"She tried to make a move on Dad," Keenan said reluctantly.

"Seriously?! As if her making a move on my Dad wasn't enough already!" Troy exclaimed in disbelief.

"When did that happen?" Alexa asked in shock.

"Just after Vergil battled one of her Pokémon," Troy explained.

"When did that happen?!" Alexa asked with greater shock.

"Yesterday," Troy replied simply.

"What happened?" Keenan asked as he glanced worriedly to his left hand side.

"All I know is my Dad encountered Adelina on Driftveil Drawbridge; Vergil had type advantage, supposedly, but he's still being treated for heavy burns," Troy said sincerely.

"Oh, gosh..."

"I hope he'll be okay," Keenan said worriedly. Alexa and Troy watched in confusion as Daniel suddenly appeared over Keenan's shoulder.

"Vergil's injuries are a clear indicator of how dangerous Adelina can be in battle," he said firmly. "And if you recall Stephan's scars, those are another example, perhaps even the more frightening example."

"How so, Daniel?" Alexa asked. Keith watched Alexa with complete befuddlement; he had absolutely no idea what was even going on.

"Her Delcatty gave them to Stephan. If you think that's nothing, consider this; according to Mum, that Delcatty's the weakest Pokémon in her team."

"You've gotta be kidding me!"

"He really isn't," Alexa said timidly. "Considering that, what's her strongest like?"

"Not a clue; Mum doesn't even know what species it is," Daniel said with concern.

"No way..." Troy muttered in disbelief.

"Okay, now it's safe to presume that Adelina's officially dangerous," Alexa concluded. "I think we should shift all – and I mean all - of our focus on helping Aunt Hailey and ignore Adelina; if Uncle Harvey's strongest Pokémon became so severely injured after battling one of her "lesser" Pokémon, battling her strongest is a death wish and, personally, I'd rather not lose another of my Pokémon to death."

"I agree with you, Alexa," Daniel nodded.

"Yep, me too," Keenan added.

"Me three," Troy grinned.

"Right. So, if we're done here, I need to go."

"Me too, I think my class is leaving the museum any minute now."

"We'll see you later, Alex!"

"See you, guys!"

"Bye." With that pessimistic farewell, all communications suddenly ended, prompting Alexa to cut off her end of the call. She sighed as she looked at the dumbfounded Keith. "Sorry about that; family issues." Keith's demeanour softened a little, recalling a recurring name that was uttered during the conversation.

"Your Dad's sister, I take it?"

"Yeah, she's, um...she's not doing so well..."

"The Contest, right?" Alexa nodded. "Listen, Alexa, why don't we go back to the coffee shop? You can explain everything that just happened."

"...yeah, okay," Alexa said quietly. "I'm starting to feel hungry anyway," she added as she and Keith walked off of the bridge, heading back to the coffee shop they raced out of. Chutney, Jollie and Ava followed, all of them satisfied that the teens were back on friendly terms, at least for the present.

"I take it you heard most of that, Xavier?" Troy presumed as he lowered his arm. A wave of magenta light ran down his body from Xavier's head, turning his human form into his usual black-mane Zoroark self.

"That Miss Flirty-pants is considered dangerous now?" he questioned.

"Pretty much, yep," Troy nodded.

"And you're telling me this because..?"

"I think you should rejoin Alexa once you're done here," Troy suggested.

"I don't see the point," Xavier said cautiously. "I mean, she has Ryder with her, and there's no doubt in my mind that Phoenix can totally wreck Adelina if he has to!" Troy faced the Zoroark firmly; even Perri and Michael were thrown off guard with how stern he looked.

"Vergil faced one of her Pokémon yesterday and suffered burns that were so horrific that he's still being treated for them...and the Pokémon who gave him the burns wasn't even her strongest! The same thing – or worse – may happen to Ryder – or Phoenix for that matter – if she has anything to say about it!"

"...and you're suggesting I return to Alex's party?! Dude, why would you even make that suggestion before telling me how this woman could potentially kill me?!"

"Rrrrr...!" Perri snarled furiously in agreement to her son's words.

"Yeah, I know; contradictory. I'm sorry," Troy apologised sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. "I was just thinking...actually, hell if I know what I was thinking..."

"Yeah, well, y'know what I'm thinking? I'm thinking that you telling me about Madam McSnooty was pointless," Xavier said with frustration. Michael chuckled at Xavier's new nickname for Adelina. "Or, rather, telling me to return to Alex's side in light of Madam McSnooty's danger level was pointless..."

"Yeah, I know." Troy suddenly glanced behind him and, through the corner of his eye, spotted the very docile and social Reese and Robbie laughing amongst themselves. "I have an idea," he said as a smirk grew on his face."

"What now?" Xavier asked, his annoyance wavering.

"Alexa's meeting with Keith t'day...I don't doubt she'll share this revelation with him – nor do I doubt that he was probably around during the conversation..." Troy's attention turned directly to Xavier and his parents. "Would you guys mind helping me train those two?" he requested politely, pointing to the Buizel and Zoroark with his thumb.

"Any particular reason why?" Xavier asked. "I mean...I know Ryder served as Reese's mentor for a little while and I heard a fair bit about Robbie's self-taught battling skills..."

"Think about it; if Keith – for some stupid reason she springs to mind – ends up confronting Adelina, he's gonna need all the help and protection he can get," Troy explained as he retrieved his vest. "Plus, those two are gonna need to defend themselves."

"What about the little one?" Xavier questioned. "I saw that Pichu he was holding!"

"Yeah, well, she's just a baby; I'm not sure if she should be fighting something that can cripple a Serperior," Troy said in a laugh as tossed his vest, stained slightly with dew and stray grass strands, over his shoulder.

"Fair point; the little thing wouldn't last five minutes," Xavier nodded. Perri and Michael all nodded in corroborating agreement.

"So...you in?"

"I don't see what harm a little polishing can do," Xavier said cheerfully. "I don't know what I can offer them in terms of new attacks and the like, but I'll be glad to help!"

"Zor," Perri smiled sweetly.

"Nine," Michael nodded keenly.

"Thanks, guys," Troy grinned. He turned towards Keith's Pokémon properly as he whistled for their attention. "Yo, Robbie, Reese, c'mere a sec!" he called, gesturing the pair to approach him. Despite their confusion, Robbie and Reese began their approach; Reese clung onto Robbie's closest antler as the Sawsbuck stood up from the grass.

"Sawsbuck?" Robbie asked curiously.

Daniel and Daphne waved farewell to Keenan as they walked towards their classmates, who were all leaving the museum with their adult escorts. Keenan walked towards the adults, starting to feel slightly pressurised for reasons he couldn't quite fathom. Iara climbed up onto his shoulders and looked at him with worry.

"So, now what do we do?" Hayden asked softly, noticing his sister's growing anxiety.

"I-I just want to go home," Hailey said in a quiet mutter.

"Straight home?" Harvey asked with concern. "Don't you want to do something to take your mind off of what just happened?"

"Why? What's the point? I'll only remember it all again tomorrow," Hailey said pessimistically. "No, I...I just want to go home..."

"Don't worry, Hailey; none of this is your fault," Hayden said kindly. As he tried to place a comforting hand on her shoulder, Hailey ever so gently swatted it away with her own. Hailey's action gave Keenan more cause for concern.

"We don't know that for sure..."

"Come on, sis! Do you really think all of this is your fault?" Harvey asked anxiously.

"I don't know anymore..."

"Hailey-"

"I just want to go home," Hailey said abruptly.

"We understand," Lily said sympathetically. "Take it easy, all right?" Hailey nodded.

"Thanks, Lily."

"I'll call you later tonight, okay?" Colin proposed as he subtly secured his grip on his wife's shoulders.

"Y-yeah, if you want," Hayden nodded. "Don't feel obligated to, though."

"Why would I? We're family; we should stick together," Colin smiled. Harvey and Hayden returned his smile.

"That's the way!" Harvey said merrily. "Hailey, for the love of all things good to you, relax! Run a bubble bath and curl up on the sofa with a cocoa or something; all this stress isn't doing you any good."

"I don't—"

"Believe me, Hailey, it's better for me to be saying this stuff than Dad," Harvey said, bearing a smirk on his face. "Come on, relax! For one night at least, live like someone who isn't depressed."

"...I'll try," Hailey said submissively.

"I'll make sure of it," Colin smiled as he began to escort his wife back home. As soon as Colin and Hailey were out of sight, Keenan stepped forward, finally capturing Hayden's attention.

"What's up, kiddo?" he asked curiously.

"She's lying," Keenan said bluntly.

"Who? Adelina?" Harvey asked with interest. Keenan nodded.

"Gardevoir," Cheryl said in agreement. Lily looked between her Gardevoir and son before she took a light breath and sighed silently.

"I believe you."

"You're not so sure about it?" Keenan questioned. Lily smiled warmly at her son.

"Not for the reasons you're thinking of, sweetheart; if anything, it raises further questions."

"Like why she's lying?" Harvey asked.

"More to the point, what's she trying to cover up?" Hayden questioned. "Yes, I can see what you mean, Lily."

"Me too; we don't know what, if anything, she's hiding, why she's hiding it and her reasons for doing whatever it is she's hiding," Harvey mused. "Keenan, are you absolutely sure Adelina's lying?"

"Through her teeth," Keenan confirmed insistently.

"Does Alexa know about this?" Harvey asked.

"I spoke to her and told her – and Troy – about it, but...neither of them said for sure. I think Alex does at least, considering Adelina to be dangerous now, but I really don't know if Troy does or not," Keenan explained.

"So she knows about Vergil?" Harvey asked. Keenan nodded in response. "You didn't say what Pokémon he was fighting, did you?"

"I didn't say anything; Troy brought it up. I don't think Troy knows what Pokémon Vergil battled; he wasn't specific," Keenan replied with a raised eyebrow. Harvey sighed silently with relief.

"In any case," Hayden began, sharing his son's suspicion. "Knowing that Adelina's lying makes this whole situation even more puzzling."

"Yes, you're right; like Harvey said, we don't know what she did, if indeed she did anything, why she did it or why she's covering it up," Lily agreed. "If anything, it makes it impossible to connect her to anything; there's no evidence to actually make such a link."

"Arceus...with that in mind, that woman could get away with murder!" Harvey said with disgust.

"Let's hope it doesn't come to that," Hayden said quietly. "We don't need that all over again." Keenan petted Iara gently on the top of her head as the pair looked towards Hayden and Lily miserably.

The coffee shop was slightly busier than the first time Keith and Alexa arrived, but the pair miraculously ended up sitting at the exact same table they were at previously. Jollie, Ava and Chutney each had a bottle of cola next to them, but Chutney consumed his leftover cake before even breaking into his bottle. Alexa returned to the table with a muffin in each hand; she placed the cream and blue muffin in front of her seat and handed the dark brown muffin over to Keith, who took it gracefully in both hands.

"Thanks," he said politely. "Are you sure this won't spoil your lunch?"

"I'm sure; we're not getting together for lunch this time," Alexa replied as she sat down. "Three of my cousins are back in school right now, so we're not going to be able to get together for lunch until this coming weekend at the very least."

"I see. But, still...are you sure you won't-"

"No, it's fine," Alexa laughed. "If anything, I need to eat more; I'm underweight." Keith's eyes widened slightly; he learned something new about Alexa, and it was something he hadn't expected to learn.

"Under-?"

"Anyway, the woman Keenan was talking about. Her name's Adelina, as you more than likely gathered; she was a fellow contestant at this year's Nimbasa Pokémon Contest along with my Aunt Hailey. She's the one with the Gothitelle, by the way."

"Adelina Cross?" Keith questioned. "Yeah, didn't Gothitelle make a shape with her telekinesis or something?"

"She moulded her Psyshock attack into a Togekiss, yeah," Alexa nodded. "Anyway, after my Aunt's Bellossom's appeal backfired, Adelina started accusing her of causing the Contest's cancellation."

"What? Why would your Aunt deliberately sabotage something she clearly loves doing?" Keith asked in disbelief.

"Well, Adelina didn't use the word sabotage, but she did hold my Aunt responsible, since it was her Bellossom's appeal that caused the Contest to be cancelled," Alexa explained as she picked up her muffin. "The next day, she paid my Aunt a visit."

"To apologise?" Keith asked with a mouthful of chocolate muffin. Alexa scoffed scornfully.

"No, to make things worse for her." Keith swallowed his confection as he faced Alexa with apprehension.

"How so?"

"Well, my Aunt's self-confidence was knocked down a few pegs after the appeal backfired...it's only been getting worse since Adelina made her visit. Dad and my Uncle Harvey have been trying to reason with her, but they're not really getting anywhere with her." Keith lowered his muffin as he clearly saw foreboding Alexa appeared to be. "My Aunt's always so lively; to be honest, it's distressing to see her so gloomy."

"Do you think she'll call it quits?" Keith asked apprehensively.

"She made that "threat" once before, but I don't really know for sure at this point," Alexa answered sadly. "I mean, she doesn't know what to believe; part of her thinks she's responsible because of Adelina's finger pointing, but part of her thinks she's not because her family knows how much Contests mean to her. She's conflicted between the two sides, so if she doesn't know what to think, how are the rest of us supposed to know?"

"I-I'm sorry," Keith apologised cordially as Alexa took a small bite from her muffin. "I...I wish there was something I could do..." Alexa politely waited until she swallowed before speaking up again.

"That's how I feel, but, unfortunately, it's Aunt Hailey's battle to fight; it's her self-esteem on the line, not mine."

"...although yours is no better, I would imagine," Keith said regretfully. Alexa gave him a gentle smile.

"I'm sure we'll both get better in time; you and I just need to work things out between us and Aunt Hailey just needs to know the truth about what happened at the Contest."

"The truth?" Keith asked sceptically.

"Well, you heard Keenan; Adelina's lying through her teeth," Alexa stated, losing her smile. "If that's the case, then she has something to hide," she continued before taking another bite from her muffin.

"Is there a reason to suggest why she'd lie?" Keith asked curiously, taking a bite from his muffin just as Alexa swallowed.

"At the moment, we can't think of a motive," she replied. "My twin cousins and eight-year-old cousin tried to think of one, but they came up with absolutely nothing."

"Maybe the Ranger Union could look into it," Keith suggested. "I don't know if they have that jurisdiction, but-"

"I appreciate the idea, but it won't be possible," Alexa declined gently. "Despite Keenan and I harbouring our suspicions, there's no physical evidence to connect Adelina to any form of...well, anything, really."

"I understand," Keith said courteously. "I still wish I could do something, though; anything."

"It's better if you stay away from this problem," Alexa said as she tore the remainder of the muffin's top away from its base and quite literally tossed it into her mouth.

"Is it a family matter or-?" Keith suddenly halted mid-sentence with Alexa's quick hand gesture indicating him to wait; Alexa swallowed before speaking up once more.

"You heard the reason why you should stay away from Adelina." Keith took a few moments to think of a reason before he remembered the conversation he witnessed.

"Okay, I'll just focus on us," he said cooperatively. "I...I really am sorry I messed things up again," he said as he consumed the last of his muffin. Alexa chuckled as she looked at the blue parts of her muffin.

"You were right about one thing, though."

"Hm?"

"I didn't want to believe your apology was sincere..." Alexa lost her smile. "And I'm sorry." Keith gulped silently and smiled reassuringly at her.

"It's okay, I don't blame you; I was an asshole to you. But..." Keith lost his smile as he felt dread behind his next question. "Do you believe me?" Alexa exhaled as she looked directly at him; she wasn't smiling, much to Keith's disappointment.

"Yeah, I do. But...it'll take a while for me to fully trust you again." Keith smiled warmly; though he was disheartened regarding Alexa's lacking trust in him, he was euphoric to know she truly did believe his sincere apology.

"I-I understand," he said gleefully as Alexa took the final bite of her muffin. "I promise you, Alexa, that I'll prove you can trust me again." Alexa looked at him curiously; she was satisfied to see him smiling at the very least. "I swear on my Mom's name," Keith concluded, subtly looking towards Ava; the little Pichu drank from her soda bottle while Chutney and Jollie laughed joyfully.

 _To be continued..._


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter Twenty One - Scratching the Surface**

Robbie strained as a small lime green orb of light formed in his gaping mouth. A cranky-looking Simisage stood nearby with his only arm on his hip, watching intently as the Sawsbuck raised his head slowly and lowered it sharply as smaller spheres of lime green light escaped the much larger orb; the smaller spheres crashed into a large boulder in front of Robbie, which partly broke apart as the lime orbs crashed into it. Xavier approached Robbie as the Sawsbuck stood up properly, whistling in awe.

"Very nice, Robbie, dude!" Xavier praised. "What do you say, Brent? Did he pass the test?" he asked the one-armed Simisage keenly. Brent observed the damage Robbie caused the nearby boulder before giving the Season and Illusion Fox Pokémon a definitive nod, much to Robbie's delight.

"Saws!"

"Way to go, Robmeister! So you've got Seed Bomb under your belt; I dare you to try the other one!" Xavier grinned as Perri, Michael and Troy approached the commotion; Reese walked next to Michael.

"Sawsbuck," Robbie replied cockily. He opened his mouth again as deep purple/black energy spiralled towards a small area in front of his snout, eventually building a sphere surrounded by vivid violet static. Robbie released the dark sphere at the same boulder he previously assaulted with Seed Bomb, which ended up almost completely demolished when the purple/black orb collided with it.

"Nice shot!" Troy praised. Robbie looked back at the Breeder with a grin on his face.

"Saws!"

"That was a nice Shadow Ball, Rob...but I really do prefer Mom's technique," Xavier remarked, glancing towards the female Zoroark.

"Zor-roark," Perri said modestly.

"What about you, Reese? How's your new attack coming along?" Troy asked curiously. Reese took a deep breath as he stepped forward, facing the pile of rubble and half a boulder.

"Bui..." Reese took a deep breath in and relaxed before he began to concentrate; as he began to strain, a flicker of grass green aura began to spark all around the Buizel's little body. However, the aura was quickly extinguished as the Sea Weasel Pokémon exhaled and began to pant. "Bui..."

"Still nothing, huh? Maybe you need to observe it again," Troy presumed.

"Yeah! Hey, Dad, think you can show Reese your Hidden Power?" Xavier asked. The Ninetales looked up at his son casually.

"Nine," he nodded as he took one step forward. He closed his eyes softly as his body became enveloped in a dark brown aura. As his nine tails spread apart slightly, small jagged rocks, made from the same aura enveloping the Ninetales, began to materialise all around his body; with a quick forward flick of his tails, all of the aura rocks flew across the paddock, crashing into the debris lying around and on the broken boulder. Reese watched in awe as the artificial rocks collided with the actual rocks.

"Good going there, Michael!" Troy complimented. Michael looked at the Buizel standing near him and observed his physique before looking back at Xavier.

"Ninetales."

"Whuh? You want me to showcase mine?" Xavier asked in bewilderment. Michael nodded.

"Ninetales?"

"N-no, I still know how to do it, Dad; I just rarely use it," Xavier replied nervously.

"Simi," Brent said grumpily. "Sage, Sage, Simisage." Xavier looked between his anatomy and Reese's.

"That's actually a good point...okay then, my turn!" Xavier said smugly as he stepped in front of the boulder. "Observe, my little Aqua Rodent friend."

"Bui," Reese nodded. Xavier closed his eyes and relaxed his stance slightly as an icy aquamarine blue aura consumed his entire outline; as he raised and crossed his arms, the aura began to rise up from his body, forming into what looked like a large bird of sorts as it rose. The Zoroark, in one swift movement, lowered and uncrossed his arms, sending the aura bird flying across the paddock and straight into the remaining half of the boulder, damaging most of it in the process. Perri applauded her son's attack while Michael smiled proudly.

"Ninetales."

"Thanks, Dad," Xavier smiled as he stood up straight. "Though I could've sworn my Hidden Power was a different type," he laughed awkwardly as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"Bui, Bui!" Reese exclaimed keenly. Perri, Brent and Michael watched as Reese began to concentrate again, reigniting his grass green aura. Xavier walked out of Reese's way and spoke to Troy somewhat privately.

"By the way, do you reckon Piper could use some attack polishing of her own?" Xavier asked curiously.

"I don't see the need for her to train yet; legally speaking, Peggy's still too young for a Trainer Card," Troy said in polite objection.

"Yeah, I know; I was just thinking that if Madam LeFlirt caught Peggy alone and challenged her-"

"That's highly unlikely, Xavier; even someone like Adelina knows the law," Troy huffed.

"Knowing it is one thing; following it is another," Xavier said smartly. Troy began to think carefully about Xavier's proposal.

"I think I see where you're coming from...I'll speak to Daphne about it later, see what she thinks," he said finally.

"In the meantime," Xavier began, watching as Reese pushed his arms forward, sending a wave of aura leaves from his body towards the remains of the heavily demolished boulder. "I can't wait for Alex to see how buffed up those guys are getting!"

"You just remember why they're getting buffed up, Buster," Troy laughed as the pair rejoined the group.

"Y-you don't have to swear on anyone's name, Keith," Alexa said nervously. Keith faced her directly as he began to fiddle with the wrapping his muffin came with. "Not sure your Mum would appreciate you using her name in vain anyway..."

"Yeah, I know; I just wanted to show that I'm serious about earning your full trust back, that's all," he explained as he folded it up into a small thick triangle.

"Yeah, well, I just hope earning my trust back won't involve you trying to be a hero and getting hurt in the process," Alexa said, laughing slightly. Keith chuckled to himself.

"You and me both," he agreed. "But, nah, I was thinking more along the lines of spending time with you and getting to know you better," he explained. "And, since we're both on leave of absence, we have the time for it."

"Yeah, that's true," Alexa said quietly.

"And you can get to know me better like I want to get to know you better," Keith added optimistically. "The ball's already rolling with what you said about yourself just a short while ago. I knew you were light, but underweight...?"

"I-It's got nothing to do with our fights, so don't worry about that; it mostly came down to the fact that I "exercise" more than I eat," Alexa explained.

"So you're active by nature?" Keith asked with interest.

"That's about right, yeah," Alexa replied casually. "And I don't usually eat that much to begin with; hell, I rarely have snacks anymore."

"Despite having just had a muffin," Keith laughed.

"Yeah, well...I usually drink water or another liquid when I get peckish," Alexa replied in a mumble.

"Listen, Alexa...I know this meeting didn't exactly go off to a great start, so I was wondering if you'd be up for meeting for lunch after tomorrow," Keith proposed nervously.

"Why not today? It'll be lunchtime when we return to Nimbasa City by train anyway," Alexa suggested. Keith was caught off guard as he looked at her with surprise.

"For real?" Alexa smiled nervously as she nodded at him.

"Yeah, the sooner we can sort this out, the better...for both our sakes." Keith smiled timidly.

"I agree, but we can just be benign from here on out; spend the afternoon getting to know each other like we did at Ranger School, y'know?"

"Oh..." Alexa appeared to be disappointed, much to Keith's confusion and worry. "It's just...I was thinking it would be a good opportunity to talk about our problems while neither of us are completely worked up..."

"I honestly don't think we'll be able to resolve everything today, Alexa," Keith said earnestly. "But...can we spend this lunchtime getting to know one another? If I want to earn your trust back, then spending time with you is possibly the best place to start right now." Alexa looked at him with a gentle smile.

"Okay," she said compliantly. Keith sighed silently with relief.

"Thanks, Alexa. Shall we?" The pair stood up off of their seats and approached their Pokémon; Keith scooped Ava up in his arms and Alexa lifted Jollie off of the ground while Chutney ran along her arm to cling onto her shoulder. With their Pokémon in their arms – and on Alexa's shoulder – the teens walked out of the coffee shop.

The weather above the glorious Skyarrow Bridge was tranquil; there was hardly a cloud in the sky and a very gentle breeze cooled the air around Harvey, Hayden, Lily and Cheryl as they walked steadily across the grand bridge towards Castelia City. For no significant reason, Keenan was on his father's back while Iara was on Keenan's. The adults couldn't help but look as worried as they felt, and they all looked highly bothered to begin with.

"So we know Adelina's lying...but why..?"

"No offence, Lily, but do we really need to go over this all over again?" Harvey asked, scratching the back of his head. "I'm sure everyone's fed up of the same redundant deduction by now."

"We're the only ones on this bridge, Harvey," Hayden sighed. "Though I can't see this Adelina business being something we can just ignore either."

"Actually, Dad," Keenan began shyly. "That's...that's what Alex said we should do..."

"She said that?" Hayden questioned, glancing back at Keenan.

"Yeah, she said that we should shift all of the focus onto helping Aunt Hailey," Keenan explained. "She said that after hearing about Vergil. Which reminds me, is he okay, Uncle Harvey?"

"Nah, he's still being treated for his burns," Harvey said fretfully. "I had to backtrack to Driftveil; it was the closest Pokémon Centre from where I was on the bridge."

"Thank Arceus he got seen to so promptly," Lily said kindly. "And, after hearing about him, I can understand Alexa's conclusion."

"Me, too, but ignoring it altogether? I know we have more important things to concern ourselves with, but I seriously think we should nip this in the bud whenever the opportunity swings by."

"Speaking of opportunities, Hayden, have you had a chance to-"

"Don't even start," Hayden said grumpily.

"What's wrong, Dad?" Keenan asked nervously.

"It's nothing major, kiddo," Hayden replied half-heartedly. "Harvey came up with the idea that your sister should consider travelling again."

"Like when she travelled through Sinnoh?" Keenan questioned.

"Yeah, but, hopefully, with a better outcome," Harvey replied diffidently. "I was just asking your Dad if he found the chance to tell Lexie about it."

"No," Hayden replied bluntly. "Look, I haven't forgotten about it entirely; it's just not a good time right now. Besides, Alexa's meeting with Keith by now, so it's far too soon to bring your proposal to her attention right now."

"Then there's meeting Gulliver later this week," Lily added quietly.

"There is that as well, yes," Hayden laughed. "But, seriously, I don't think now's the time to raise your idea to her in light of everything else that's going on."

"That's fair enough," Harvey said understandingly. "But it makes me wonder if I should bring Naomi up to speed with everything..."

"It's probably best if you don't," Hayden advised. "She doesn't exactly see eye to eye with the rest of us anyway..."

"Outside work, she's an introvert; it's nothing personal. I don't think. But I dunno..."

"It's ultimately your decision, Harvey," Lily said nicely. "You do what you feel is right."

Striaton Academy's playing field was bustling with a variety of characters and activities; most of the students were running around and chasing one another, though there were several groups that simply stood around or sat on the grass either having a conversation or studying. Adelina and Huey walked away from the woodlands near the fenced off playing field and soon spotted Peggy standing around a tiny group of girls her age; they appeared to be having a very light-hearted conversation, but Adelina's eyes were glued to the auburn haired girl.

"By the way, Peggy, how was the movie?" asked the red haired girl curiously.

"It was bad," Peggy replied truthfully. "Nobody in the crowd liked it."

"Nobody?" questioned the blonde girl. "Was it really that bad?"

"Yep."

"Why would your Mom wanna see it if it was bad?" inquired the ash brown haired girl.

"We thought it would be good; my cousin Troy's Pokémon was in it and we had my other cousins with us as well," Peggy explained.

"That's too bad, Peggy," said the silver haired girl sympathetically. "I hope their visit wasn't totally a waste."

"No, it wasn't; they're all still here," Peggy replied coyly.

"So they're still here despite you being in school? I hope they'll be okay with that," the red haired girl said with worry.

"They're all busy with their own stuff, so I'm not worried," Peggy said cheerfully. She suddenly spotted Adelina through the corner of her eye and subtly looked at her; the bronze haired woman leaned against the nearby tree with her arms folded.

"It's just as well; family visiting while you're in school is never fun," the silver haired girl stated.

"Yeah, no kidding, Ivory; my Grandma and Grandpa visited while I was in school once, and it wasn't as fun as I wanted it to be," the ash brown haired girl moaned.

"That's too bad, Michelle," Ivory said sadly. The red haired girl looked at Peggy in bemusement.

"Peggy? What's the matter?" she asked.

"I-I need to go," Peggy said skittishly as she began to flee deeper into the playing field. Ivory, Michelle and the other two girls watched her in confusion.

Daniel and Daphne were sitting in front of the school's cherry blossom tree, away from the other students; Daniel was contentedly reading his novel, "Night of the Clefairy Dance", while Daphne was tuned into her MP3 player, with a rock style melody playing faintly through the Poké Ball headphones around her head, accompanied by a somewhat monotonous female voice singing the main vocals. Daniel secretively shifted his gaze from his book to watch his twin sister embracing the music pouring into her ears.

"Daphne! Danny!" Peggy cried. Both twins watched as their little sister ran over to them, looking fairly disturbed. Daniel lowered his book and Daphne pulled her headphones down to her neck; the rock music became slightly more audible.

"What's the matter, Peggy?" Daphne asked with concern.

"If someone's bullying you, just ignore them; I wouldn't trust any of the teachers with a bully problem if my life depended on it," Daniel said mean-spiritedly.

"No, it's not that," Peggy panted. "It's Adelina; she's over there," she explained, looking towards the rather distant figure of Adelina. The twins looked towards the stranger just outside the fence; the bronze hair and large hoop earrings were unmistakable, while the black tube top and lace blouse were very familiar to Peggy.

"What's she doing here?" Daphne asked in bewilderment.

"It doesn't matter; it's best we ignore her, like Alexa said," Daniel shrugged.

"Um, since when do you listen to Alexa?" Daphne asked teasingly.

"Since she reached a conclusion I agree with," Daniel said as he rolled his eyes. "Listen, Peggy, we spoke to Troy and Alexa about her and we agreed it's best to ignore her."

"Lexa said that?" Peggy asked curiously.

"Yeah, she did," Daniel confirmed. "Remember when we talked about Adelina's battling skills?"

"Uh huh," Peggy nodded.

"That's why we should ignore her; she's dangerous, so just...ignore her, okay?" Hearing Daniel's advice cheered Peggy up.

"Okay!" she nodded compliantly. "Thanks!"

Adelina continued to watch Peggy conversing with her older siblings from afar. Eventually, she sighed bitterly as she stormed away from the playing field, Huey hurriedly following after her. The walk through the woodlands was slow and silent, which unnerved the Delcatty.

"Blu...Blu..." Adelina and Huey stopped dead in their tracks when they heard the gentle cooing of a snoozing Swablu; sure enough, Piper was roosting in one of the nearby trees, with her cotton-like wings wrapped around her like a heavenly blanket.

"Hmm..." Adelina observed the sleeping Piper in thought.

"BUI!" Reese pushed his arms forward once more as his aura leaves sped across the paddock, demolishing the very last remains of the boulder that once stood in front of him.

"That was excellent, Reese!" Troy praised.

"Kinda surprised you haven't evolved already, dude," Xavier said casually, lightly scratching the top of his snout.

"Bui?" Reese looked up at the male Zoroark in confusion.

"I'm sure he'll evolve whenever the time's right," Troy said as he raised his arm and fiddled with his black and ruby red Xtransceiver. Xavier noticed his actions.

"Watcha doing?"

"Getting hold of Alexa," Troy explained as he began to initiate the contact. Seconds later, Alexa's video feed appeared on Troy's main screen.

"What's up?" Alexa asked quickly.

"Hey, girl! Listen, think you can get hold of Keith somehow? Or pass a message on to him?" Troy asked curiously.

"Uh, I'm right here," Keith said in bemusement as he appeared on the video feed over Alexa's shoulder. "What's going on?" Troy's smile grew larger.

"Hey, dude! Glad you're around, it saves me having to use Alexa as a Pidove!" he laughed. Annoyed with Troy's remark, Alexa huffed silently in frustration. "Listen, just wanted to let you know your guys have made some great progress this morning!"

"Progress?" Keith questioned.

"Troy, this wouldn't have anything to do with Adelina, would it?" Alexa asked crabbily.

"Yeah, it does," Troy replied bashfully. "I wanted to make sure Robbie and Reese were equipped to defend themselves – and Keith – against Adelina in case he crossed paths with her." Alexa appeared to be slightly more annoyed.

"I understand your intentions, but, honestly, Adelina has no reason to cross paths with Keith," she said in light protest. "Furthermore, I did say we should ignore her."

"Yeah, well," Troy began nervously as he rubbed the back of his head. "I wasn't sure if Keith was around when he heard that, so..."

"It's okay, I appreciate it; they had a pretty rough time against Jordan and Andy's Pokémon," Keith said gratifyingly. "Even after Reese's training with Ryder."

"Robbie handled that Haxorus decently in Viridian Forest, though, and he was a newly evolved Pokémon to boot," Alexa said praisingly. "Though this whole thing seems to be a bit of a contradiction; I advise we all stay away from Adelina and you train two of Keith's Partner Pokémon in case they end up battling against her."

"Yeah, well, personally, can any of us truly say we trust Adelina will let us ignore her? We're already questioning her credibility as it is," Troy explained rationally.

"I can see what you mean..."

"Who needs a lie detector when you have the likes of Keenan and Alexa around?" Keith laughed.

"Exactly," Troy nodded. Xavier looked at the Xtransceiver from over Troy's shoulder.

"Yo, Alex! How're you doing?"

"Hi, Xavier! No, we're...we're okay," Alexa replied nervously, glancing towards Keith slightly. "We're on our way to lunch; it's about that time."

"I take it you're talking to each other now?" Xavier asked, losing his smile slightly.

"Yeah, but we're still working on things at the moment; early days and all that," Alexa replied, her own smile fading away. "Crap...there's just so much going on, it's hard to focus..."

"Try to stay calm, you heard what the doctor said," Troy advised dotingly. "Maybe you should just focus on you and Keith for the time being." Keith merely looked at Troy in confusion.

"I know...but I can't help worrying about Aunt Hailey..."

"You aren't going to be able to help with her worries if you're carrying some of your own," Troy said wisely. "Concentrate on your own problems for now, okay? The rest of us can offer a penny for Aunt Hailey's thoughts."

"You sure?" Alexa asked apprehensively.

"Yeah, don't worry about it," Troy smiled kindly. "Oh, and Keith?"

"Yup?"

"Swing by whenever you're ready to pick your boys up," Troy said with a wink.

"Thanks a lot, man."

"Keith? Sorry I was rude to you before," Xavier apologised.

"It's okay, I don't blame you," Keith said reservedly.

"Anyway, we should get going before the restaurant gets too busy," Alexa said quickly.

"Alex, is it okay for me to come back to ya when my visit's over?" Xavier asked eagerly.

"Yeah, of course," Alexa smiled kindly. "Say hi to Perri and Michael for me!"

"Will do," Xavier winked.

"Have fun, you two!" Troy said teasingly as he cut off his communication. "Well...good for them!"

"They're only getting to know one another? I thought Keith knew Alex inside and out," Xavier said counfoundedly.

"Nah, that's Phoenix," Troy said simply. "He's like a bloody encyclopedia when it comes to things about Alexa; he knows everything there is to know about her."

"Even her...?" Xavier began to ask, holding his claws over his bust area. Troy looked rather disgruntled with what the youthful Zoroark was attempting to ask.

"...somehow I wouldn't be surprised if he did know her-" Before Troy could finish his sentence, a loud echoing shriek broke the tranquil atmosphere in the Daycare Centre's paddock, with a distant flock of Pidove fleeing from the trees in a far-off woodland area. Troy and Xavier drew their attention to the fleeing birds, as did the rest of the Pokémon in the paddock.

"That came from Striaton! How did we hear it from here?" Xavier asked in stupefaction.

"Xavier, Striaton is less than a minute's walk from here, it wouldn't be impossible for a scream to reach this area," Troy said cautiously. "But that sounded forced for some reason..."

"Worth investigating?" Xavier asked.

"Frankly, it shouldn't be any of our business, but, judging by where the Pidove came from, the scream came from near the academy...Perri, Michael, you're in charge until I get back!" Troy suddenly exclaimed as he leapt over the fence. Caught off guard, Xavier pursued Troy, a magenta wave quickly turning his true Zoroark form into the black-haired human persona he utilised previously.

"Wait up!" he yelled. Robbie, Reese, Perri and Michael watched Xavier chasing after Troy as the two headed towards Striaton City.

"Saws, Sawsbuck?" Robbie asked, tilting his head in marvel. Perri shrugged as she chuckled.

"Ninetales," Michael sniggered.

"Help! I-I need help!" Adelina cried as she ran towards the fence surrounding the Striaton Academy playing field. Several students and staff members gathered around the spectacle, but, as Adelina was the centre of the attention, Peggy and the twins were cautious in their approach, as it seemed that Adelina was holding something charred in her lace blouse.

"What's the problem, miss?" asked the most senior looking staff member.

"I-It's this poor Swablu!" Adelina cried with forced despair. "It got attacked by a foul-tempered Zebstrika and-"

"Adelina?" Daphne, Daniel and Peggy pushed their way through the crowd and carefully confronted the seemingly distressed woman.

"Peggy! You have a Swablu, do you not? Is this yours?" Adelina asked as she worriedly showed the little girl the injured Swablu in her blouse; the Swablu's eyes were ruby red and filled with agony.

"...Blu..."

"Piper!" Peggy cried as she took her wounded companion out of Adelina's unnecessarily thin garment. "Piper, what happened!?" Daphne also showed her devastation towads Piper's ill health, but Daniel's suspicious eyes and mind were focused on Adelina.

"I-It was a Zebstrika! Huey was able to scare it off, but not before..." Huey sadly walked closer to Adelina's side. "Oh, darling, I am so sorry! And to think I would choose today to forget my supplies..!"

"Mr Walker, I need to take my sister to the Pokémon Centre!" Daphne pleaded as she looked up at the senior. The man looked down at the girls with concern.

"Just go," he said approvingly. "I'll let Mr Everett know what's going on."

"Thank you, Sir!" Daphne said gratefully as she began to hurriedly escort Peggy off of the school grounds. Adelina, in consternation, noticed that Daniel hadn't budged.

"Are you not worried for your sister's Swablu?" she asked innocently. Daniel scowled at her before leaving the pursue his sisters. As the students and teaching staff talked amongst themselves, Adelina sighed and secretly revealed the tiniest of smirks, Huey sharing the same smile.

Daniel soon caught up with his two sisters near the Pokémon Centre, but Troy and Xavier arrived moments before the three made their way inside the Pokémon Centre.

"Daphne!" Troy cried. Peggy and the twins watched their eldest cousin and Alexa's disguised Zoroark speedily approaching them. "Is every-" Troy suddenly noticed Piper in Peggy's quivering arms. "Piper?! What happened!?"

"Alleged Zebstrika attack," Daniel explained, somewhat rudely as everyone headed inside the Pokémon Centre. "I say alleged because of the Trainer who found her; Adelina."

"Adelina found Piper?!" Xavier asked in disbelief. Troy lifted his Xtransceiver as a panicky Peggy handed Piper over to the nurse. Daniel spotted Troy searching through his contact list.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Letting your parents know about this," Troy replied simply, initiating a communication with Colin.

The Nimbasa City restaurant was moderately busy, but Alexa and Keith managed to find a quiet two-person booth table away from most of the other customers. The pair sat opposite one another with a tall glass of cola on either side of them as Jollie, Ava and Chutney were all curled up underneath the table, all resting peacefully.

"So you were homeschooled?" Keith asked with interest. "Huh; there was me thinking you went to school like everyone else..."

"My Grandpa's qualified to teach, since he has a doctorate degree," Alexa explained, smiling shyly. "As a matter of fact, his official title is Dr Thorndyke."

"He's a Doctor?"

"Not the kind of Doctor you're thinking of; he was a researcher in his prime," Alexa elaborated. "He still is, but he's more of a freelance researcher now."

"Hence his little jaunts during our mission to stop Jordan, I suppose," Keith guessed.

"Yep. While he's already learned pretty much everything there is to know about Pokémon, which he passed onto me during our lessons, he still enjoys observing Pokémon in their natural environments."

"So apart from what you'd consider to be the basics, did he teach you anything else?" Keith asked curiously.

"Yes, he was the one who taught me everything I know about the Legendary Pokémon," Alexa replied with slight hesitation.

"So when you told Jordan you were familiar with all of the Legendary Pokémon...that was true?"

"From Arceus to Zygarde," Alexa confirmed. Keith whistled in awe.

"Gotta admit; that's pretty impressive stuff," he complimented. "Y'know...I'm really glad we're doing this..."

"Socialising?" Alexa guessed.

"Yeah. While we were both on duty, we never really had the time to have these conversations without the need to sort out some kind of problem," Keith said appreciatively. "Even when we had the time off, we spent more of it in enjoying each other's company instead of getting to know it."

"That's true," Alexa said quietly.

"So, is Keenan in school or does he get the same treatment you did?" Keith asked with further interest. "More to the point, has your schooling finished?"

"He's also being homeschooled and my schooling ended before I enrolled at Ranger School," Alexa explained.

"Damn! You two are lucky to have a qualified tutor in the family," Keith said admiringly as he spontaneously began to fiddle with the nearby vinegar bottle.

"Technically, Keenan has two tutors; my Grandpa and my Mum," Alexa explained. "Mum tutors him for the most part, but Grandpa still provides him with the Pokémon side of the home academics. My Grandpa tutored me all by himself because my Mum was—uh..." Keith looked up at Alexa in confusion.

"What's wrong?" he asked. Alexa was looking at the vinegar bottle under Keith's finger.

"Can you please...leave that alone..?" Alexa requested, hinting the vinegar bottle. Keith was even more baffled, but removed his finger from the bottle nonetheless.

"How come?" Alexa recoiled.

"I...hate vinegar," she replied inaudibly. Keith stifled a laugh.

"Sorry, what was that?"

"I hate vinegar," Alexa said clearly. "It...it tastes as vile as it smells and it's sickening! It's just...urgh, just keep it away from me," she said with complete disgust. Keith sniggered, frustrating Alexa. "I-It's not funny!"

"Sorry. No, it's just..." Keith calmed down as his laughter died. "It's a nice change of pace to hear about what you don't like. Though, if you ask me, you hate vinegar because you're far too sweet for it." Alexa felt herself blushing, though she appeared unimpressed.

"That was so corny," she said bluntly.

"It got you, though, didn't it?" Keith laughed. Alexa merely looked at him begrudgingly, despite her blushing as Keith laughed nervously.

An anxious Hailey and Colin burst into the Pokémon Centre and hastily approached Peggy, Daniel and Daphne, who were waiting in the main lobby with Troy and Xavier. Peggy sat between her brother and sister, tensely clutching her skirt as she awaited news on Piper's condition. The Striaton Pokémon Centre lobby was spacious, yet quiet at the same time, with the very few Trainers inside the building only requiring extremely basic services for their Pokémon's health and well-being. Troy spotted the parents approaching them.

"Troy! Is there any news?" Colin asked breathlessly.

"Not yet," Troy answered, shaking his head. "She's still with the nurse."

"They brought in a doctor as well, though," Daniel said delicately. "But, if anything, that means Piper's in good hands." Daphne moved from her seat to allow Hailey to take her place, carefully taking her youngest daughter into a warming embrace.

"Oh, sweetie...she'll be okay...!"

"But...I don't get why she got hurt..!" Peggy fretted.

"Me neither; Adelina said a Zebstrika attacked her, which raises more questions than it answers," Daphne mused. Daniel looked up at Troy.

"Has Lucy been out of the Daycare Centre at all?" Troy glared at the suspicious cousin.

"No, she hasn't," he replied nastily. "Lucy has no reason to hurt Piper anyway, why are you accusing her?"

"Settle down, fellas, there's no need to start a fight," Xavier said peacefully, stepping in between the conflicting boys.

"Lucy does have a pretty bad attitude, though, Troy," Daniel said accusingly.

"I already said Lucy has no reason to hurt Piper," Troy retorted. "And, besides, there are wild Zebstrika between Striaton and Nacrene; don't point the finger at Lucy just because she's the only Zebstrika you know!"

"That's enough, both of you," Colin cautioned calmly. "I'm more concerned about Adelina's involvement."

"How's that?" Hailey asked.

"Adelina was the one who found Piper," Daniel replied. "Tch! Like I'm going to take her word for it?" A nurse suddenly approached Peggy and her family; she cleared her throat lightly to attract their attention.

"Miss Peggy? Your Swablu's going to be just fine," she stated with a warming smile on her face.

"Thank Arceus," Colin sighed with relief.

"Thank you!" Peggy said with delight.

"How bad were her injuries?" Daniel asked curiously.

"She was suffering from paralysis, but she's mostly bruised," the nurse replied carefully. "In my professional opinion, the pattern of the bruising suggests to me that the assailant was either a Zebstrika or another equine Pokémon that can use an Electric attack." Daniel was stunned; Adelina was telling the truth?

"I think that's all we need to know," Colin said nervously. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," the nurse said courteously. "I'll check to see if she's ready to be discharged."

"Can I come? I want to see her," Peggy said persuasively.

"Of course," the nurse said kindly as she escorted the little girl to her beloved companion. Daniel blinked in perplexity.

"Adelina was telling the truth? I don't understand this..."

"I'm going to bring Harvey up to speed with this," Colin said as he looked at and fiddled with his Xtransceiver. Daniel mimicked his father.

"Alexa should know about this."

"Is there a reason for why they should know?" Xavier asked.

"We don't keep secrets in this family," Colin explained.

"It's purely transparency, Xavier," Daniel added in corroboration. Xavier sighed.

"So much for a peaceful lunch date..."

 _To be continued..._


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter Twenty Two – Getting To Know You**

"Lunch...? Daniel, wait, hold up!" Troy suddenly exclaimed. Daniel glanced at his eldest cousin in suspicion while the rest of the family faced him in confusion.

"What's up?" Daphne queried. Troy rubbed the back of his neck timidly.

"Alexa's in the middle of a lunch meeting with Keith right now," he replied.

"And?" Daniel asked sceptically.

"I, uh...I told her to focus solely on her relationship issues..."

"It's true, I was there," Xavier said quietly, raising his arm slightly.

"Why would you say that when you clearly heard her saying we should shift all of our focus on Mum?! She was the one who said so!" Daniel fumed. "And now you're telling me you told her to turn her back on her own words?"

"Give her a break, she's recently gotten over a concussion!" Troy argued back. "Even though she's only just gotten the all-clear from the doctor, she shouldn't put herself under too much stress!"

"That's no excuse to make a hypocrite out of her," Daniel said rudely.

"What do you care anyway? You don't like her!" Troy snapped.

"Okay, boys, cool your jets," Colin said calmly, gently stepping in between the conflicting boys. "I honestly feel it is better for Alexa to focus on her problems right now, so I think Troy was right in telling her to put her focus into that."  
"Dad!"

"It's okay, honey, I don't have a problem with it," Hailey said kindly. She sighed as she ran her fingers through her bleach blonde hair. "Alexa has her own demons to face; I should face mine."

"You sure, Mum?" Daniel asked with concern.

"Yes, I need to buck up sooner or later," Hailey smiled. "I'm just sorry it took Piper getting hurt to make me realise that."

"Peggy's not going to hold that against you," Daphne beamed, giving her mother a loving cuddle. "But she'll be so glad you have this new resolve!"

"I wouldn't go that far, sweetheart...it's more of a kick up the backside," Hailey said sheepishly.

"Either way, it's an improvement," Colin smiled.

"So," Hailey continued, looking at her sceptical son. "Let Alexa worry about her problems; nobody needn't worry about me anymore anyway." Daniel folded his arms.

"I hate to admit Troy being right about this, but...fine, I'll roll with it."

"Gee, thanks," Troy said sardonically.

"Right, where was I...?" Colin mumbled to himself as he resumed fiddling with his Xtransceiver again.

The streets of Castelia City were as lively as expected from such a large city; many people of different social standings were walking passed one another, some talking on phones, some talking with the people walking alongside them and others wearing an assortment of headphones. Hayden, Harvey, Lily, Keenan and Cheryl were among the crowd, staying as close to one another as possible. Rick was flying slowly overhead, observing the group in case it ended up scattering unintentionally. As everyone was about to head into the Castelia Art Gallery, Harvey's Xtransceiver rang with a gentle xylophone tune, attracting his attention and the attention of his company.

"Who's that, Harvey?" Hayden asked as Harvey lifted his arm to look at his caller.

"Colin," he replied as he accepted the communication. The xylophone melody died as Colin's face appeared on the screen. "What's up, bud? Is Hailey okay?"

"It's not Hailey; it's Piper," Colin replied.

"Piper?" Lily questioned curiously. "What happened?"

"We're currently in the Striaton Pokémon Centre right now; Piper's been attacked."

"Attacked?! What happened?!" Hayden asked in shock.

"Well, we don't know the full story behind the attack," Colin said reluctantly. "But what we know for sure is that Piper was hit by an Electric type attack, an equine Pokémon was the culprit and Adelina was the one who found her." The very mention of Adelina's name sparked immense suspicion in Keenan's mind.

"Adelina? As in our Adelina?" Harvey asked in disbelief.

"Who else?" Colin asked rhetorically.

"What was Adelina even doing around the academy to begin with? Presuming this was where the attack took place, at least..."

"You're right, Harvey, it took place just outside of the academy's playing fields, according to the kids," Colin nodded in confirmation.

"Then what was Adelina doing there?" Harvey asked again.

"Haven't a clue," Colin replied. "We thought you should know, though."

"Any reason to suggest Adelina being behind the attack? Does she have a Pokémon fitting the description of Piper's attacker?" Harvey asked as Hailey poked her head over Colin's shoulder.

"Not that I know of, but, even if she does, I don't know why she'd provoke an attack against a Pokémon who can't even fight back," she explained. Keenan had a fair few possibilities running through his head.

"In any case, it's safe to say she's trying to get a reaction; I say we don't give it to her," Harvey smirked.

"I thought we established this before," Hayden said as he raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, it was Alexa's idea to ignore Adelina," Lily noted.

"Is that right? Well, I can't say I argue with her on that one," Colin smiled nervously.

"But I really want to nip this in the bud, Harvey; before she instigates a challenge with anyone else in the family," Hailey said keenly. Hearing her optimism greatly pleased Harvey and Hayden.

"Sounds like you're getting your fizz back!"

"Good to see you again, Bubbles," Hayden said teasingly.

"Very funny, wise guy," Hailey retorted sarcastically. "But, seriously, I want to be the one to deal with Adelina; nobody else needs to get involved."

"I respect that," Hayden said approvingly.

"In the meantime, I think the rest of us should be cautious," Harvey said seriously. "We all know how Stephan fared against Huey, so it's not unorthodox to presume that her strongest Pokémon is capable of murder; it doesn't matter if we avoid her or end up talking to her, do not get into battle with her. If the choice isn't there, stay attentive and bail out whenever you can." Everyone nodded in complete agreement, but Keenan took a deep breath and sighed silently, concerning Iara.

The Nimbasa restaurant was slightly busier than it was when Keith and Alexa first arrived; a few more tables were taken, though most of them were still quite a distance from Keith and Alexa's booth. Most of the other customers were just chatting over a drink, some were eating quietly, but others, like Keith and Alexa, were having a conversation as they ate. Keith was enjoying a piping hot cheese and vegetable risotto with his glass of cola, while Alexa enjoyed a piece of flatbread with her chicken salad and cola. Miraculously, Jollie, Ava and Chutney were still asleep under the table, despite being in the midst of overlapping conversation.

"Be honest; what was your favourite Pokémon encounter?" Keith asked curiously as he lifted a forkful of his creamy rice from his ivory white bowl.

"You mean out of my Pokémon or in general?" Alexa asked as she tore a small piece of flatbread and dipped it in some salad dressing.

"I meant in general, but you can tell me which of your Pokémon had your favourite encounter as well," Keith smiled before consuming his cheesy rice.

"When it comes to my Pokémon, my favourite encounter was..." Alexa politely paused to take a bite from her flatbread piece and waited until she swallowed it before she resumed speaking. "Urgh, I can't decide...but my top three are Razor, my Crobat, Cassie and Bouquet, my Roserade." Keith swallowed his rice.

"Cassie doesn't really surprise me, given that she's a Lapras, but why the other two?" Keith asked as he took his icy cold glass in one hand; he drank from the glass as Alexa elaborated.

"Cassie because she looked absolutely beautiful when I first found her in Union Cave," she said admiringly. "You needed to have been there, but it was just...stunning..." Keith's smile died slightly as he returned his glass to the table.

"Makes me wish we saved that pod from Jordan," he said carefully. Part of him was surprised to see how casual Alexa appeared after having reminded her of a grim part of their past mission in the Johto region.

"Cassie was on her own, but I do know how you feel," Alexa said calmly as she stabbed some of her lettuce and a piece of chicken breast with her fork.

"What about the other two?" Keith asked with interest. Alexa smiled as she lifted her stick of chicken breast and lettuce leaves from her plate.

"Bouquet because of what she was doing when I first saw her," she began with an amused grin on her face. "She was dancing in the rain just outside Verdanturf Town," she explained before consuming the food on her fork.

"Dancing?" Keith questioned. "In the rain?"

"Mm," Alexa nodded. She swallowed her food before she spoke up again. "She loves the rain. Like, even more than sunshine."

"A bit odd for a Grass type... And why Razor?" Keith asked before eating another forkful of his creamy rice. Alexa appeared to be relatively embarrassed, carrying a timid smile and looking very slightly away from Keith's line of sight.

"Ah...that was because we found him in our attic," she replied quietly. Keith swallowed his rice before he ended up choking on it; Alexa's reply astounded him to say the least.

"You're kidding?!"

"No, I'm not," Alexa laughed nervously. "About six years ago, Keenan got scared because of an unusual noise in the attic just before we went to bed, so my Mum went to investigate," she continued, pausing to take a drink from her cool cola glass. "She couldn't find anything until something flew passed her; it was so quick and so sudden that she got scared half to death. Actually, I was scared she found an Ariados or – worse yet – a Galvantula when we heard her scream."

"Was she okay?" Keith asked with concern.

"She was spooked, but she was fine otherwise," Alexa said happily. "Razor didn't mean to scare her; he just got scared when she moved one of the boxes near where he was hiding."

"How did he get there anyway?" Keith asked curiously.

"Haven't the foggiest; our roof has always been in top form, so we don't know how he got there, when he got there or how long he was up there," Alexa replied with uncertainty. She glanced towards Keith as she lifted a cherry tomato from her plate with her fork. "What about you? Do you have a favourite Pokémon encounter?" Keith chuckled light-heartedly as Alexa consumed the lone tomato in one bite.

"Yeah; a Flabébé," he replied. Alexa's eyes widened.

"A Flabébé?!"

"Yeah; when I was five, I was playing outside in the back yard and I saw a Flabébé in my Mom's hibiscus bush," Keith explained dreamily. "It held onto one of the flowers, so I picked it out of the bush and let the Flabébé leave with it."

"Awww, that's so cute!" Alexa squealed with delight. Keith laughed.

"That's rich coming from a girl with a Rhyperior in her roster!"

"Girls can train Rhyperiors if they want to, just like boys can train Clefables if they want to! ...actually, I fought a guy with a Clefable once in the Hoenn League..."

"Random bit of information there, Alexa," Keith said observantly as he consumed some more of his rice, with a piece of fresh veg on top of the pile as a nice little bonus.

"What kind of Pokémon did you expect me to have anyway?" Alexa asked out of interest. Keith swallowed before answering, taking his glass in his hand again.

"To be honest, I'm not sure, but Rhyperior certainly wasn't one of 'em!" he chuckled.

"Y-yeah...that doesn't surprise me," Alexa replied nervously. The pair were silent as Keith drank the last of his cola, and it wasn't until he placed the empty glass on the table again that Alexa looked at him; she instantly noticed the look of mild dread on his face.

"...hey, Alexa? Can you help me get to Troy's Daycare to pick up Robbie and Reese after we're done here?" he asked shyly.

"Yeah, of course," Alexa said kindly. "I don't think Phoenix will be too wild about it, but he'll be able to give us a lift." Keith smiled at Alexa.

"Thanks, Alexa. I'll pay you back for it."

"No, it's fine," Alexa declined courteously. "I was planning on seeing Troy after this anyway, it's no big deal."

"Yeah, but...between that, this and Ava's Soothe Bell...I need to do something to pay you back!" Keith said insistently.

"It's really no bother, but I appreciate the thought," Alexa said modestly as she ate another forkful of her salad. Keith smiled gently at her, but began to think of how he could return the favours Alexa did and was going to do for him.

Peggy returned to the Pokémon Centre's main lobby and approached her parents, siblings and eldest cousin with the kind and gentle nurse who contributed to Piper's treatment. Peggy was back to her usual sunny self, carrying a bandaged Piper in her arms. Daphne and Troy were relieved to see a smile on the Swablu's beak, but Daniel was happy to see both Piper and Peggy carrying cheerful grins. Colin approached the nurse as Hailey cuddled her happy daughter.

"Is everything okay?" he asked.

"Piper just needs to rest for now; she should be perfectly fine by this time tomorrow," the nurse said kindly.

"Thank you so much!" Peggy said politely.

"You're welcome, little miss," the nurse smiled.

"Right, now that this crisis is over, I think it's time to get back to school," Hailey suggested. "Come on, I'll walk you three there."

"Okay," Daphne said willingly. Daniel nodded compliantly as he followed his mother and sisters out of the Pokémon Centre.

"Is there anything we need to know about her after care?" Colin asked worriedly.

"The doctor saw no reason to give Piper any specific after care, but if you do have any concerns, I recommend taking her to the GP, especially if any problems do arise, such as restricted muscle movement, for instance."

"Thank you so much," Colin said with relief.

"It's my pleasure," the nurse said courteously as she turned to leave the lobby. Satisfied, Colin faced Troy and Xavier.

"I'm going to get back to Hailey. Make sure you bring Alexa up to speed, okay?"

"What, after establishing where her focus should be?" Xavier asked quizzically.

"It's just bringing her up to speed; so long as you can convince her to keep her focus on her own problems, then there shouldn't be any harm in keeping her updated," Colin explained.

"Isn't that being a little hypocritical..?"

"It's fine, Xavier," Troy said calmly. "Don't worry, I'll tell her." Colin smiled.

"Good. I'll see you later," he said quickly as he raced out of the Pokémon Centre. Troy and Xavier began to walk out of the Pokémon Centre slowly as they began to analyse what just happened.

"So, Adelina found Piper after she was assaulted... Adelina's involvement alone is enough to suspect foul play."

"You reckon?" Xavier asked.

"Well, Adelina's bullying Aunt Hailey, isn't she?" Troy asked rhetorically. "And her being around at the precise moment Piper was attacked is too much of a coincidence..."

"What do you think?" Xavier asked curiously. Troy sighed as he tightened his ponytail.

"I haven't a clue...but I'm more interested in Aunt Hailey's well-being..."

"Why? She's doing okay now."

"Now she is, yeah...I'm just worried she'll end up teetering on the edge of depression again," Troy sighed. "All we can really do now is be there for her when and if she needs the support." Xavier nodded in agreement.

The Castelia Art Gallery was vast and spacious, with many pieces of art on display; there were canvases hanging on the walls and statues placed strategically around on the floor. The smaller statues were displayed on the identical white display stands, some of which were protected by a glass case. Lily and Keenan were happily talking about the history of a beautiful painting of a Reshiram and Zekrom in the company of their Pokémon, Cheryl and Iara. Hayden and Harvey stood further away from the Reshiram and Zekrom painting and conversed as they observed the interaction between mother and son.

"What's your take on this whole Adelina versus Hailey issue?" Harvey asked.

"Versus? You make it sound like a full-on confrontation," Hayden said. "No, to me, it feels one-sided."

"Seeing as Hailey's still seeing Adelina as her friend, that doesn't surprise me," Harvey nodded. "Actually, it's almost admirable of Hailey to carry on seeing Adelina in such a light."

"Admirable? If I had a friend who began treating me like that, I'd certainly question if they were a true friend!" Hayden said nastily.

"Yeah, almost was the operative word," Harvey chuckled. "But what the hell happened to make Adelina so...devious?" Another gallery visitor, who was observing a masterfully sculpted statue of an Articuno, suddenly looked in Harvey and Hayden's direction, the Helioptile sitting in his hood looking in the same way.

"Arceus knows," Hayden sighed as the visitor cautiously made his way over to the conversing brothers. "But all I care about in this situation is Hailey."

"Amen," Harvey agreed whole-heartedly.

"Excuse me," the visitor said curiously. Harvey and Hayden drew their attention to the Helioptile owner now standing next to them; the man was dressed mostly in black clothing, wearing a thin hooded jacket, thin black bootleg trousers and black leather boots. His jet black hair was stylistically messy with a single patch of his fringe dyed bright violet and he had a black lip stud in the lower left corner of his lip. Despite how intimidating he appeared to be, his demeanour and tone of voice were non-threatening. "I couldn't help overhearing; you weren't talking about Adelina Cross, by any chance, were you?"

"Yes, we were," Harvey replied. "You know her?" The young man smiled.

"My name's Toby, I'm a long-time Pokémon Co-Ordinator," Toby said politely.

"Same with our sister, Hailey Hawkstone. I'm Harvey, and this is my brother, Hayden."

"Hailey Hawkstone...heh; her Jolteon made me want to find an Electric type Pokémon, y'know," Toby grinned as he petted his Helioptile's head. "Am I right in assuming that there's bad blood between Hailey and Adelina?"

"Albeit one-sided, yes," Hayden confirmed. Toby took a deep breath and quietly exhaled.

"That doesn't surprise me."

"Come again?" Hayden asked in confusion.

"There was a rumour about six years ago, when I was competing in my first Contest in Slateport City, that Adelina's starting to turn," Toby explained.

"Turn?" Harvey asked in bewilderment.

"Y'know, like a yoghurt? People said she started to turn sour after her battle with Hailey in Fallabour Town," Toby continued.

"So why would Adelina start something now and not six years ago?" Hayden questioned.

"Rumour also had it that she spent the last six years intensely training her Pokémon," Toby responded.

"How intense?" Harvey asked.

"The six Super Training programmes," Toby said hesitantly. Harvey and Hayden went wide-eyed with terror.

"Bloody hell..."

"My daughter took her Charizard through a mix of two of those programmes; that's how he became so slender!" Hayden said in astonishment.

"Mmhmm, those programmes aren't child's play," Toby nodded. "Any Pokémon who completes just one of them one time becomes significantly stronger, but going through them for six years? They're sure to end up beastly."

"No wonder my Serperior had a hard time against her Jellicent! And my Serperior is my strongest Pokémon!" Harvey said in consternation.

"Mmhmm, sounds about right," Toby nodded. "I'd steer clear of that one if I were you; personally, my guys, gals and I haven't met her face to face, but she definitely sounds like a bad seed."

"We're kind of trying to, but she's starting to find ways of getting to us," Harvey said nervously.

"Try to ignore her; she's looking for a reaction."

"My daughter suggested something similar, or so we've been told," Hayden said in agreement.

"Keep at it," Toby said encouragingly. "I should really be off now; I'll be competing in the Nimbasa Contest once the stage has been repaired."

"Do you think Hailey was responsible for damaging it?" Harvey asked reluctantly.

"Honestly, I doubt it very much," Toby shrugged as Lily, Keenan and the Pokémon approached him. "I couldn't see anything wrong with her Bellossom's appeal; if anything, it was splendid until it suddenly intensified." Keenan was instantly struck by deja vu; it was as if he heard the exact same thing before.

"Thanks for the advice at any rate," Hayden said earnestly.

"No problem," Toby smiled as he began to walk away from the brothers. Harvey and Hayden then spotted Keenan, Lily and the Pokémon nearby.

"Oh, hi! You done with your art lesson?" Harvey asked playfully.

"What was that all about?" Lily asked curiously.

"Long story short, Adelina seems to have turned against Hailey at some point six years ago," Hayden said quickly.

"And Adelina took her Pokémon through a six-year long run through the Super Training programmes," Harvey added.

"Super Training?! Oh, gosh...!"

"What's Super Training?" Keenan asked in bemusement. Hayden crouched down to Keenan's level, looking at his son squarely in his sapphire blue eyes.

"Do you remember when Phoenix evolved into Charizard?" he asked.

"Yeah, he was overweight, I think..." Hayden nodded.

"Alexa took him through a mixture of two special training programmes that, individually, are designed to drastically increase a Pokémon's strength in a different aspect, like their physical strength or their speed. There are six programmes in total, one for each aspect, and Adelina took all of her Pokémon through all six of them for six years." Keenan's eyes widened with horror in light of what he had just heard.

"Six Pokémon through six Super Training programmes for six years..." Harvey mused. "...I'm going to tell Hailey about this; I'll go and see her myself as soon as we're done here. After that, I'll bring Troy up to speed."

"Lily and I will tell Alexa once she comes back to us," Hayden said seriously, Lily nodding in agreement. Keenan scratched his head; there was something about Adelina that didn't seem to add up to him. Iara looked up at him in confusion.

Troy and Xavier casually approached the isolated Daycare Centre just as they saw a slender and very cranky Charizard landing on the ground just in front of the main entrance of the centre. Recognising the Charizard all too well, Troy and Xavier ran up to the Charizard just as Keith and Alexa dismounted from his back; Ava, Jollie and Chutney were all wide awake and holding onto their respective human partners. Robbie and Reese spotted Phoenix's landing and raced to the fencing near the Flame Pokémon in hopes of greeting Keith.

"Hey, good to see ya!" Troy greeted. "I take it everything went well?"

"A rocky start, but we're getting there slowly," Keith replied. Despite his optimism, he felt intimidated around the angry Phoenix.

"Sounds like you had fun, though," Troy smiled. Keith nodded as he approached his Buizel and Sawsbuck, petting the pair of them over the fence.

"Yeah, it...it was nice," Alexa said, smiling timidly. Jollie noticed that Alexa was blushing slightly.

"So they're ready for me to pick them up?" Keith asked as he stroked Robbie's snout.

"Yep, they're ready for ya," Troy nodded. Keith backed away as Robbie leapt over the fence with Reese clinging to his antlers during the entire stunt.

"Do you charge?"

"Normally, I charge by the hour, but I'll let you have this as a favour; that means you owe me one," Troy grinned.

"Thanks," Keith said kindly. After placing Ava on Robbie's back, he looked over at Alexa. "Now what?"

"Same time tomorrow?" Alexa inquired.

"Yeah? How about meeting at the coffee shop on Route 4?"

"Yeah, sounds good," Alexa nodded. "I'll see you then."

"Yep," Keith nodded. To Alexa's absolute surprise, Keith pecked an incredibly quick kiss on her cheek. "See you tomorrow," he said as he climbed onto Robbie's back. Before Alexa could react, Robbie galloped towards the direction of Nacrene City, Keith, Reese and Ava riding on his back. Alexa watched the Sawsbuck galloping out of sight as her blushing became slightly more obvious. Troy and Xavier looked at one another worriedly as Phoenix watched the disappearing Sawsbuck disapprovingly.

"Hnmmph," he snorted.

"Chipachi-pachi," Chutney said teasingly. Alexa quickly shook her head before facing Troy and Xavier.

"Sorry about that," she said coyly. Troy smiled at her sweetly.

"It's no big deal; if anything, that shows progress," he said kindly. "Why don't we head on inside? You can give me all the dirty details over a brew!" he proposed as he opened the front door of the centre.

"It was lunch; hardly scandalous," Alexa muttered as she and Phoenix followed Troy and Xavier inside the Daycare Centre.

Not too far away, Adelina watched as Troy and Alexa entered the Daycare Centre with Xavier and the Pokémon from the shadows of a tall pine tree; after the door closed, a tiny grin made its way on Adelina's face.

 _To be continued..._


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter Twenty Three - Regroup**

Rena darted straight into the air with Harvey sitting securely on her back. Hayden, Lily, Keenan and Cheryl stood outside the Castelia Art gallery as they waved at the fleeing Dragonite until she disappeared from sight. Hayden sighed as he turned his attention to his wife and son.

"Is it really possible for Pokémon to endure the Super Training programmes for so long?" he asked worriedly.

"I don't know, sweetheart, I've never put my Pokémon through one before," Lily said worriedly, Cheryl shaking her head to confirm Lily's claim.

"Alex has; do you think she'd know?" Keenan questioned.

"It's possible, but let's wait for her to return, okay? Right now, though, how about we get back to the hotel?"

"Good idea, Hayden," Lily smiled. "Today's been hectic to say the least."

Robbie galloped through Nacrene City until he suddenly skidded to a halt in front of the Nacrene Museum as Keith carefully tugged the scruff of his neck. Robbie, Reese and Ava looked at the large white building in confusion, but Keith looked at it in thought; he looked as though he was thinking of an idea. He climbed off of Robbie's back and made his way inside, further confusing his Pokémon.

"What?! That's awful! Is she going to be okay?" Alexa asked worriedly as she received a steaming hot mug of creamy cocoa from Troy. She and Phoenix sat on a soft sofa in a very tidy lounge, with a glass coffee table placed in the centre of the room, surrounded by an armchair and a second sofa identical to the one Alexa and Phoenix sat on. Chutney and Jollie sat on the sofa next to Alexa while Xavier sat on the sofa opposite her, close to the armchair Troy proceeded to sit in.

"Yeah, she's going to be just fine," Troy said reassuringly. "She just needs rest mostly, but we both know Peggy will take good care of her."

"I'm not disputing that, but it's worrying that such a young and inexperienced Pokémon was assaulted," Alexa sighed.

"Uh, hey, how did your meeting with Keith go?" Troy asked anxiously.

"Way to keep the subject change subtle, dude," Xavier said sardonically. Troy glared spitefully at the disguised Zoroark.

"It was nice," Alexa smiled. Phoenix looked at her in wonderment as she continued her regalement. "It started rocky, but we decided to spend the rest of the time getting to know each other...I'm actually a little jealous that he found a Flabébé in his garden, but I'm happy about how lunch went."

"I take it that went well, going by that little peck we saw outside?" Troy asked slyly.

"Y-Yeah, it was really nice," Alexa replied, blushing a little.

"So, how do you feel about him now?" Troy asked curiously. Alexa's smile waned a little.

"I...I-I guess..."

"Y'know, babe, it's okay to LIKE the guy," Xavier said teasingly.

"Xavier, please. So, how do you feel?" Troy asked curiously.

"To be honest...I'm a little more comfortable around him now, so that's something, I guess..."

"Hey, the whole point of your meetings is to improve how you feel about him," Troy smiled. "Implying you want to save your relationship anyway."

"So far, things are looking hopeful," Alexa smiled. She suddenly realised what she just said and felt slightly awkward.

"What? What's wrong?" Troy asked worriedly.

"N-Nothing... I just remembered Keith saying the exact same thing once a while back," Alexa replied timidly.

"To you?" Xavier asked with intrigue.

"Not exactly; he was...sticking up for me."

"Sounds like he was a solid guy," Troy grinned.

"He is! ...uh, was...I-I mean is! ...y-yeah, he is..."

Rena landed in front of Colin and Hailey as they approached the Nacrene City Museum. Robbie trotted closer to the building to avoid the Dragonite's landing, though she was oblivious to the Sawsbuck's presence. Harvey dismounted from Rena's back as he approached Colin and Hailey.

"Harvey! What's the rush?" Colin asked in puzzlement. "Piper's going to be fine, we know that now."

"It's not about Piper," Harvey said as Keith exited the museum with a white carrier bag in one hand. "It's about something Hayden and I found out from another Co-Ordinator."

"So, why didn't you just call us?" Hailey asked suspiciously as Keith suddenly observed the conversation from a distance, recognising Hailey's voice.

"I wanted to tell you in person," Harvey said seriously. "There's apparently a rumour that was floating around six years ago that Adelina put her Pokémon through the Super Training programmes."

"Holy Mew; those things are strenuous," Colin said in shock.

"Yeah, but you can't argue with the results; Phoenix is a clear example of that," Hailey said calmly. "So Adelina took her Pokémon through the programmes once, it's not exactly-"

"No. It wasn't just once; she took her Pokémon through the programmes for six years running," Harvey said gravely. Keith was left utterly perplexed as he watched Hailey and Colin reacting in complete shock and slight disgust.

"Who told you that?!"  
"Some not-actually-a-goth Goth kid called Toby," Harvey replied.

"Aww, Toby! I haven't seen him and Benji since the Opelucid City Contest last year!" Hailey said with delight. "But, gosh...it's no wonder Vergil had a rough time against Dolores..."

"So, what now?" Colin asked as Keith climbed back onto Robbie's back. While Robbie galloped out of the city, Harvey returned Rena to her Poké Ball.

"For one thing, I'm going to tell Troy what I just told you," he replied. "In the meantime, you get home and try not to worry about a thing," he concluded as he sprinted passed Hailey and Colin. They watched as he raced out of the city, looking relatively disturbed.

"Easy for him to say," Colin said quietly.

Keenan lay on the bed of his hotel bedroom with a large Pokémon History book directly in front of him and a pen in his right hand, which was looming over a book of lined paper with neatly written informative notes taking up the top half of the page. Iara watched as Keenan shifted his focus from the history book, which focused on the Unovan legend of Reshiram, Zekrom and Kyurem, and wrote some more key information down in the book near his right hand.

Hayden and Lily were in the main lounge of the hotel room, looking relatively anxious; Lily sat on the sofa, but Hayden paced around the room quietly.

"Hayden, I know this is a bad time, but, to be honest, I don't think we'll be able to put this off for much longer," Lily said worriedly.

"Yeah, you're right," Hayden agreed hesitantly. "So, then, when DO we tell her?" he asked openly.

"I don't know, but, the sooner we do, the better."

"I just don't want to put any more stress on her shoulders," Hayden said with concern. "I mean, she's already focusing on Keith while trying to ignore Adelina right now, I don't really want to add the prospect of travelling again to her worries."

"Maybe if we can talk her into waiting until she sorts out her relationship with Keith before making a proper decision, we could tell her later today."

"That's a bit too soon. Besides, she's meeting Keith for the first time since their fight today; don't you think that telling her now would be a bit much?"

"Y-Yes, you're right...but if we don't tell her soon, we may not be able to find the right time to do so." Hayden sighed.

"To be perfectly honest, Lily, I don't think we'll ever find the right time to tell her," he said reluctantly. "I say we sit down with her tomorrow and tell her."

"Yes, that's probably the best thing we can do at the moment..."

Keenan looked at the closed bedroom door in bewilderment before he looked down at his history book, trying to move on from what he overheard from his parents. He quickly wrote down a trivial piece of information in his notebook until he stopped mid-sentence; for some reason he couldn't fathom, his mind shifted to Adelina and the rumour he heard from his father and uncle. Iara suddenly appeared concerned for her Trainer.

Troy entered the lounge with Harvey following behind him. Alexa and Phoenix looked up at the pair as they entered, unintentionally startling Harvey with their presence.

"Alexa! I didn't expect to see you here," he said nervously.

"It's okay, we're almost ready to leave," Alexa said as she placed her empty mug on the coffee table in front of her. "I was just asking Phoenix to take me straight to Castelite after we're done here; I'm beat."

"Well, seeing as you're here, you should hear this, too," Harvey said worriedly, rubbing the back of his neck anxiously.

"What's up, Harv?" Xavier asked curiously as a magenta wave coursed down his figure, quickly shifting it into his natural Zoroark form.

"It's something Hayden and I heard from another Co-Ordinator," Harvey began. "There was a rumour that Adelina's been taking her Pokémon through the Super Training programmes for six years running."

"What?!" Alexa gasped in horror.

"No wonder Vergil had it rough," Troy said worriedly.

"I don't get what the big deal is," Xavier said naively.

"You don't know what the Super Training programmes are," Harvey sighed. "They're a series of intense exercises designed to strengthen every area of a Pokémon's battling ability."

"Phoenix went through a combination of two of said programmes to lose weight," Alexa explained, hinting her Charizard's slender physique. Xavier observed Phoenix's figure and whistled in awe.

"I thought you went on a diet."

"Rhrgh, rhrr-rr-rrgh," Phoenix said casually.

"Anyway, one session per programme is enough to make a Pokémon significantly stronger in one attribute. But...any more than that can cause health risks; why would Adelina be so willing to put her Pokémon through that kind of pressure?"

"Settle down, Alexa, you just focus on your own problems," Troy said quickly.

"How are you getting on with that anyway?" Harvey asked with intrigue.

"So far, we're just getting to know each other," Alexa replied.

"She means 'all over again'," Xavier jested.

"Good idea," Harvey smiled.

Pinwheel Forest was peaceful and quiet, with hardly anyone walking through the serene scenery. A gentle breeze blew through the trees, causing a heavily light shower of leaves to fall and flow in the wind. Keith sat in front of one of the larger trees in the forest, rummaging through the white carrier bag he received at the Nacrene City Museum. Robbie lay next to Keith, with Reese and Ava resting on the Sawsbuck's back. Keith smiled as he pulled out the contents of the carrier bag; a stunningly crafted and expertly painted ceramic figurine of a Floette with a white, blue and red colour scheme holding a pointed red and black flower. He smiled endearingly as he admired the figurine from every angle; the sunlight that seeped through the above canopy shone on the figurine as he twisted it around. He was so busy admiring the beauty of the figurine that he didn't notice six pairs of feet approaching him.

"My...what an adorable figurine!" Adelina said admiringly.

"Thanks, but it's not for me," Keith stated, entranced by the perfectly sculpted Pokémon figure.

"Oh? Well, I do hope the recipient likes it as much as I do," Adelina said wishfully, lowering her chest to give Keith a clear view of her cleavage as she leaned towards him suggestively. Robbie was impressed to see Keith ignoring the temptation.

"I dunno. I'll have to find out when they get it," Keith said ambiguously. Adelina stood up properly again; she rubbed her back briefly before she folded her arms.

"I don't know why you don't just return to the Daycare Centre and give it to her right now." Keith finally looked up at Adelina, a look of extreme bewilderment plastered on his face.

"...excuse me?" Adelina smirked at the puzzled boy.

"Aw, c'mon, darling...I saw that sneaky little kiss you gave her; you've got a thing for her." Keith stood up and looked directly at Adelina's face; after a few seconds of silence, his eyes widened.

"...hang on...you're Adelina Cross! From the Nimbasa Contest!" Adelina giggled as she stroked her Delcatty's head.

"Very astute. And who might you be, sweetiekins?" she asked innocently. Keith placed the Floette figurine back into its carrier bag as he glared at the attempted seductress cautiously.

"I don't think I should answer that; from what I've heard about you, your reputation is questionable at best."

"Pardon me?"

"I wouldn't bother feigning innocence; I heard things about you from the girl you saw me kiss," Keith said nastily.

"Alexa," Adelina sighed. Keith panicked a little. "I know her as Hailey's niece, darling. What, do you honestly believe I'd hurt her?"

"I'm not prepared to take that risk," Keith said spitefully.

"Aw, c'mon, honey, you can trust me," Adelina said sweetly as she walked slightly closer to Keith. Robbie stood up as Keith moved away from her.

"You're old enough to be my Aunt!" he said with disgust. Adelina blinked in genuine confusion.

"Aunt? Isn't the expression 'old enough to be my mother'?" she asked. Keith looked away from her nervously before he suddenly climbed onto Robbie's back, Reese and Ava moving to Robbie's head as the boy mounted the Sawsbuck.

"C'mon, Robbie, let's go," he said unenthusiastically.

"Saws!" Robbie nodded as he galloped away from Adelina, heading straight for the Skyarrow Bridge. Adelina watched Keith disappearing in bewilderment.

"Huh; did I touch a raw nerve?" she asked as she stroked the concerned Delcatty. Huey's concern changed to perplexity as he saw a sinister grin on Adelina's face. "Maybe I can do that again..." Huey grinned cunningly.

"Reow...!"

Phoenix flew straight into the sky with Alexa, Jollie and Chutney sitting on his back; Xavier followed closely, the magenta energy wave swiftly transforming his body to that of a Hawlucha. Troy and Harvey waved at the departing Pokémon until they appeared to be nothing more than particles in the sky.

"How was she when she arrived?" Harvey asked with concern.

"She was fine," Troy smiled as he looked towards his father. "She and Keith arranged another meeting tomorrow!"

"Sounds good to me. You will keep an eye out for her, won't you?"

"Of course! Just try and stop me!"

"Nah, I don't think so," Harvey chuckled.

"How's Aunt Hailey doing anyway?" Troy asked. Harvey sighed as he ran his fingers through his hair.

"Maybe we should go inside; this could take a while."

Phoenix and Xavier cruised steadily through the clear blue sky. Jollie and Chutney sat near Phoenix's neck as they felt the wind blowing through their fur, but Alexa took the time to appreciate the Skyarrow Bridge from a bird's eye view. Along the way, she spotted what looked like a person riding on a Pokémon; from her altitude, the person and Pokémon looked like a blurry brown and crimson blotch. She soon looked ahead as Phoenix and Xavier approached one of Castelia City's many tall buildings.

Phoenix and Xavier approached and hovered in front of the window to Alexa and Keenan's hotel bedroom; Keenan was still lying on his bed with the two books in front of him. Alexa lifted Jollie with both hands and held her up to the window, where the little Buneary proceeded to knock gently on the glass with her right ear, attracting Keenan's attention. Keenan smiled happily as he rolled off of the bed and quickly approached the window to open it. He then moved aside as Alexa moved her legs in front of her, allowing her to almost slide into the room.

"You look happy; everything go okay?" Keenan asked as Alexa hoisted Jollie onto her shoulders.

"A rocky start, but it turned out well in the end," Alexa replied as Chutney leapt into the room. She took out two identical Poké Balls and returned Phoenix and Xavier to their respective capsules. "How are things on your end?"

"To be honest, they're not great," Keenan sighed as he closed the window behind Alexa. "Then again, you already know what's going on."

"Yeah, I recently heard about Piper and the Super Training rumour from Troy and Uncle Harvey," Alexa said grimly as she sat on her bed.

"What do you think?"

"To be honest, I don't know what to think anymore; the Super Training thing might be plausible because of how badly Vergil got hurt, but I'm not sure how or why she'd attack Piper, implying that she didn't merely find her..."

"Daniel briefly accused Lucy of the attack," Keenan said glumly.

"Bun?"

"Troy's Zebstrika," Alexa explained to the bewildered Buneary. "Anyhow, Lucy has no reason to attack anyone, why would he think she did it?"

"Adelina said a Zebstrika did it," Keenan replied.

"Hmm...I don't know...to be honest, I shouldn't even be thinking about her; I have enough on my mind as it is."

"All rocky starts aside, how did the rest of your meeting go anyway?" Keenan asked curiously. He was even more intrigued when he saw a smile from his blushing sister.

 _To be continued..._


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter Twenty Four - Nerves**

"It was...nice," Alexa replied simply. "We had a lunch date at the restaurant in Nimbasa City – you know, the one we went to after our double battle?"

"Yeah?"

"I-I figured it'd be lunchtime by the time we took the train back to Gear Station, so...I proposed the lunch date. It was Keith's idea to use that time to just get to know each other."

"So you're starting all over again?" Keenan asked with interest.

"Or, rather, starting off where we were supposed to have started," Alexa said coyly. "Being Top Rangers kind of got in the way of dating opportunities."

"Didn't you have dates beforehand?"

"Just once; we spent the day in the Goldenrod Department Store after we got out of the hospital."

"Oh, yeah," Keenan said glumly; he was briefly reminded of why Alexa and Keith were in the hospital to begin with, but he also recalled the heavy feelings of fear and despair he felt in the aftermath of the avalanche that could have killed his biggest inspiration. "S-So, uh...how come you're so confused about the whole thing?"

"It's mostly because of how I feel about it," Alexa replied, unsurprised that Keenan caught whiff of her confusion. "I feel...I dunno, it feels like I have Beautiflies in my stomach whenever Keith's on my mind now..."

"That wasn't the case before?"

"Don't get me wrong, I did enjoy thinking about him before our big fight, but...this time, it feels like I can't without this feeling in my stomach..."

"You sure it's not hunger pangs?"

"No, I don't think so...hunger pangs don't feel as warm and bubbly..." Alexa looked directly into the chocolate brown eyes of her bright Buneary as she moved from her shoulders to her lap. "Is this what it feels like to have a crush on someone?" she asked rhetorically. Jollie just shrugged in response; it was clear from the bemused look on the bunny's face that she was equally as perplexed about this alien feeling as Alexa was. "I've...only felt like this once before." Keenan was slightly alarmed.

"Really?" Alexa nodded.

"There was a moment in Almia when Keith protected me from Kincaid; he...he held my hand to steady my nerves and told me to stay calm. That was when I...I felt like I do now."

"I didn't know that."

"...I-I know..." Keenan noticed how introverted Alexa suddenly became, which worried him; she looked sad and even appeared...guilty?

"...what happened that day, Alex?" he asked carefully. He noticed Alexa subtly wrapping her arms slightly tighter around the Buneary on her lap, which only served to worry him and confuse Jollie.

"...I'd...I'd rather not talk about it if you don't mind...it's...not exactly a crowning achievement of mine." Now Keenan was even more concerned, but, choosing to abide by his sister's wishes, decided not to press the matter any further. "The point is that was the last time I had this feeling; it was a while ago and I didn't know what it was back then either."

A light knock at the door interrupted the conversation as Hayden and Lily entered the room; they were mildly surprised to see Alexa sitting on the bed, but happy to see her nonetheless.

"Hi, Lexie! When did you get here?" Lily laughed.

"A-A few minutes ago; I'm sorry I didn't say anything."

"Don't worry about it, we trust you," Hayden winked. "How were things with Keith today?"

"They were good; we spent most of the day getting to know one another over lunch. But...now I have this bubbly feeling in my stomach whenever I think about him...I felt it a while ago, too, but I don't know what it is..."

"Sounds to me like you have a crush on him," Hayden said bluntly. Alexa blinked in complete bewilderment.

"Crush?"

"Aww, you don't know what a crush is? That's so cute!" Lily said endearingly. Alexa wouldn't call her ignorance of the feeling 'cute', but she listened intently as Hayden began to share his interpretation of this mostly undefined sensation.

"I'd describe it as the budding stage of love; to use your case as an example, it basically means you harbour strong feelings of affection for Keith that have the potential of blossoming into true love."

"Think of it as the flower on an Ivysaur's back," Lily added with a smile; she was still relatively amused by Alexa's lack of experience with the emotion. "It's the middle stage between simply liking a person and being in love with them."

"I get it!" Keenan grinned happily. Alexa, however, looked away from her parents, deep in thought about what she just heard.

"...how do you know when the infatuation is real?"

"That, my dear, is something that you need to figure out for yourself," Hayden replied. Alexa smiled happily at her parents.

"That's what I'm hoping to do. Thanks for the advice."

"Of course, sweetie!" Lily beamed.

"You know you can talk to us about anything at any time, so feel free to ask if you need any more advice." Hayden looked over at Keenan; the two shared the exact same merry smile. "That goes for you as well, kiddo."

"Right!"

Keith quickly dismounted from the tired Sawsbuck's back as he trotted through the large doors of the Driftveil Star hotel. Keith lifted Ava from Robbie's head and held her in his arms as they proceeded to walk through the main lobby. However, they soon encountered Naomi, who was walking alongside a Gallade carrying a red and cream bundle of fur in his slender green arms.

"Oh, Keith! Hello! How are you?"

"I'm good, thanks," Keith replied optimistically. "I had a lunch date with Alexa and, if I'm honest, I think we've gone off to a good start."

"That's good to hear," Naomi said happily. "I don't know much about what she's like nowadays, but I do recall her being a very kind little girl, so I do hope you work things out with her." Keith recalled Naomi's lack of familiarity with Alexa's character, but he still found it odd, considering that, as far as he knew, her family was a very tight unit.

"Yeah, how come you don't know much about her? I thought the Thorndykes were family oriented."

"Truthfully? I...I haven't spoken to Hayden OR Hailey since Harvey and I divorced nine years ago," Naomi said shamefully. Keith felt bad for practically invading Naomi's privacy.

"I'm...sorry."

"Don't be; it's nobody's fault but mine."

"Guh-lade," the Gallade rolled his eyes in frustration.

"Steven, shush," Naomi said quietly. "Anyway, you needn't worry about me; just worry about your own problems." Reese, Robbie and Ava looked at Keith worriedly as he began to doubt himself, remembering how he almost ruined his relationship with Alexa twice already.

"I just hope I can win her back and not screw anything up again..."

"I don't know the exact circumstances, but I do know this; the best thing you can do is to not betray the trust she has in you, even if it's just a small amount."

"...yeah, I'll give it my best shot," Keith said keenly. "But..."

"Hm?" Naomi was confused when she saw Keith grinning at her.

"You really should talk to your ex." His proposition alarmed Naomi, but Steven nodded in complete agreement, alarming Naomi further. "I'm not as emotionally astute as Alexa, but I can at least see that there's tension between the two of you; talk to him, if only to clear the air. But don't be afraid if you end up falling for him all over again," he winked. Naomi was left stunned by his confidence.

"Uh...duly noted...thank you..." Keenan merely nodded in response as he and Robbie walked passed her, continuing their journey to his hotel room. "Come on, Steven, let's get Jason to the Pokémon Centre."

"Lade," Steven nodded as he followed Naomi out of the hotel. Jason coughed breathlessly in the Gallade's arms.

The Striaton Academy playing fields weren't as hectic as they were previously; there were several students sitting in a crescent formation, Daniel and Daphne being among said students, sitting in front of the teacher sitting on the grass opposite them. Some of the students appeared to be bothered by the light of the afternoon sun shining over their heads, some started to feel cramps in their legs while others were just waiting impatiently for the school day to end. The teacher tightened her caramel brown ponytail as she began to address her students.

"I figured today was a nice day to take today's class outside," she began as she brushed some stray grass stains off of her floral print skirt, which was long enough to cover her ankles. Daniel simply stared at his teacher grumpily; he was malcontent about her incredibly lax attitude. "Now, as I was going to say in the classroom, today's lesson is about the Pokémon League Association's Battle Clauses." Almost everyone in the class murmured amongst themselves in confusion; the only ones who remained silent were Daniel and Daphne. Daniel rolled his eyes, knowing that his final class of the day was something he could easily read for himself in the official Pokémon League Association Pokémon Trainer's handbook, a copy of which he, in fact, possessed, while Daphne simply yawned, covering her mouth politely as she did so.

"What're those? The rules?"

"Kind of," the teacher answered. "They're the little rules the Pokémon League Association has constructed in order to ensure a Pokémon Battle is executed with as much fairness as possible. Can anybody tell me an example of a Pokémon League Association Clause?" Daniel remained silent and willingly paid little attention to the lesson, but Daphne raised her hand.

"Only one Pokémon may be under the effect of paralysis at any time."

"That's correct, Daphne; a very basic clause, but that's one of the most commonly used ones," the teacher praised. "How about another?"

"No Trainer can have more than one Pokémon of the same species; for example, you are not allowed to have two Excadrill in your team," Daphne answered quickly; she was starting to become as annoyed with the seemingly unnecessary lesson as her twin brother.

"That's right! That one's known as the Species Clause; it prevents the Trainer from using an entire team consisting of half a dozen Garchomps, for instance."

"Which, in actuality, would be an easy victory if you have a Fairy type Pokémon," Daniel grumbled. "Or an Ice type attack."

"Or a Fairy type Pokémon with an Ice attack," Daphne added teasingly. Daniel laughed.

"Yeah; that team would lose if they met Alexa's Azumarill."

"That is another reason why Species Clause is in permanent effect; while it may make you look powerful, it provides you with very limited type 'coverage', meaning that you would struggle – and even lose – against Pokémon of certain types," the teacher explained. "And one more?"

"You can't trap a sleeping Pokémon?" asked a random boy sitting next to Daniel.

"That's right; it's illegal to use Mean Look on a sleeping Pokémon or use a Pokémon with Shadow Tag against the sleeping Pokémon," the teacher elaborated. Daniel and Daphne looked bored already; they knew all of this already – their parents are Pokémon Trainers, for goodness' sake! "However," the teacher continued. "A couple of new clauses have been created over the last fifty years or thereabouts, one of which is optional; who knows what the optional clause is?" Daphne raised her hand.

"Mega Evolution."

"Correct! Not all Trainers have access to this special type of evolution – by choice or otherwise – so the Pokémon League Association has decided to make this clause optional. Regardless, the overall rule is still the same; both Trainers must have a Pokémon that can Mega Evolve in their teams and can only have one in battle at any time. If one person has a Mega Evolving Pokémon and the other doesn't, the Mega Evolving Pokémon cannot Mega Evolve in battle."

"Miss, what are the other new clauses?" asked a female student standing behind Daphne's left shoulder.

"For the most part, they're fairly benign. One of them is a Nickname Clause; Pokémon may not have nicknames that contain obscene language or are of another species of Pokémon – for example, you cannot name your Garchomp 'Caterpie'."

"Why would you even want to do that anyway?" Daphne asked in confusion.

"Because some people have a sick sense of humour," Daniel grumbled.

"The most prominent new clause, however, is the Hypnosis Clause," the teacher said seriously.

"Does that mean the move Hypnosis is banned?" asked another boy sitting behind Daniel.

"You'd think so, but, no, the clause has no relation to the move Hypnosis." Somehow, Daniel and Daphne were intrigued; they hadn't heard of this clause. "Following the discovery of Psychic type Pokémon being able to manipulate the minds of their opponents, it has become illegal for a Trainer to have their Pokémon brainwash their opponent's to make them act against their own free will. This clause is in permanent effect for a very good reason; not only does it prevent the possibility of an unfair match – emphatically so in a Double, Triple or Rotation battle – but it also prevents the possibility of the opposing Trainer getting attacked by their own Pokémon." Daniel and Daphne looked at one another fairly anxiously; they were clearly disturbed by this new clause, but they couldn't put their fingers on why that was the case.

Piper, having since been left in Hailey's care while Peggy was finishing her school day, roosted on the plush green cushion resting in the middle of the kitchen table. Hailey stood in front of the recovering Swablu, using a teaspoon to feed her a mixture of crushed painkiller tablets and birdseeds. Colin leaned against the kitchen worktop nearest to the stove and oven with Madison hovering over his shoulder and a tall glass of carbonated water in his hand. Colin's Delcatty, Charlotte, and Hailey's Jolteon, Dexter, stood next to their respective Trainers, their attention focused on Piper's many bandages. Hailey's Altaria and Colin's Salamence were at the table, highly worried for the little Swablu.

"Don't worry, Annabelle, Piper's going to be just fine as long as she gets plenty of rest."

"Ti-ruh..." David nuzzled Piper's cheek lovingly as she ate from Hailey's teaspoon.

"Y'hrrrgh..."

"What happened, sweetie-pie?" Hailey asked worriedly as Piper finished the last of her birdseeds. The red-eyed Swablu looked up at Hailey gloomily.

"Blu, Blu..."

"What do you mean you can't remember?" Colin asked in bewilderment; his confusion came from the fact that Piper bore no head injuries, ruling out concussion as an explanation.

"Blu-blu! Blu...blu...!"

"You just blacked out...? Just like that?"

"Blu," Piper nodded at Hailey. "Blu-blu-blu, blu, blu."

"That's...puzzling...nobody just 'wakes up' with electrical burns," Hailey said sceptically as she placed the used teaspoon in the kitchen sink with the other used cutlery that was soaking in the semi-fresh washing up water. "I don't know why Adelina wasn't as clear about the attack as she could have been..."

"What are you going to do about her anyway?" Colin asked worriedly before drinking some of his sparkling water.

"All I can do is keep trying to reason with her," Hailey said hopefully.

"I'm not convinced that she can be reasoned with," Colin admitted as he placed the glass down on the worktop. Madison approached the glass with curiosity.

"I know you're not, but that doesn't mean I shouldn't try! And I know she's proven to be a...less than desirable friend, but, as far as I'm concerned personally, she's still my friend and, if I can get through to her, I'm more than willing to try!" Colin smiled as Madison took the glass in her tiny little arms and sipped some of the fizzy water.

"That's the spirit," he said happily as Madison looked away from the water with complete revulsion.

"Bleeegh...!"

"I'm really happy my Honeybee's buzzing again." Hailey smiled at Colin as she carefully lifted Piper off of the cushion and set her down on Annabelle's back.

"I am, too," Hailey said as Annabelle and David carefully left the room with Piper.

Harvey and Troy sat on the same sofa Alexa and Phoenix sat on during their time in the tidy lounge. Laddy was nearby, having fun with the one-armed Simisage leaning against the wall nearby, watching his Trainer conversing with his father; he seemed to be multi-tasking, as he was also batting his tail against Laddy's, entertaining the Aipom.

"Well, Hailey and Colin were pretty disturbed by the rumour to say the least," Harvey said. "But, at the same time, Hailey wasn't too surprised."

"No?"

"Just because you have type advantage, it doesn't mean you're guaranteed an instant victory; I mean, you can pit a Florges against a Flygon, but the Flygon could still win if he or she uses Iron Tail on the poor Florges."

"Yeah, it's like we say; it's not what you have, it's how you use it," Troy smiled.

"Exactly," Harvey nodded. "Advantages can help, but, in the end, that's all they are; just advantages. Even with them, victory isn't assured. How often do you say that to people anyway?"

"Not too often; I don't usually get the toffee-nosed types around my humble abode," Troy laughed. "But, seriously, though, I don't give folks that kind of lecture that often, but, when I do, it's usually to starting Trainers who are just starting to get used to being a Trainer."

"Better that than the snooty types," Harvey said cheekily. "But that battle...urgh..." Harvey rubbed his eyes as he recalled the painful memories of his battle against Adelina on Driftveil Drawbridge. "Stupid Jellicent..." Troy's eyes widened with terror as he began to panic.

"J-Jell...?!" Harvey, having immediately realised what he just said, quickly faced Troy and quickly placed both hands on his shoulders as he tried to make eye contact with his panicking son. Brent hurried over to Troy and rubbed his back with his hand.

"Troy? Troy! Troy, look at me. Look at me, sport, it's okay!" Harvey said reassuringly. Troy slowly turned his head to look Harvey squarely in his sapphire eyes. "You're okay, do you hear me? You're safe; there's nothing here that will hurt you, all right?" Despite breathing heavily and deeply, Troy nodded slowly as he attempted to calm himself down. Eventually, Troy looked down and hid his eyes in his hand.

"I-I'm sorry..."

"Don't be; I was the one who used the J word, it's my fault you nearly had a panic attack."

"A-Again..."

"Eh?"

"Outside the Contest Hall...I-I bumped into one. I-If Alexa hadn't been there..."

"She calmed you down?" Troy nodded in response.

"I owe her one," he said feebly, finally starting to breathe normally again. "Not that she'd let me return the favour, mind."

"Modest to a fault, that one," Harvey laughed. "Just like her old man."

"Says his older brother," Troy jested.

"Ha, touché. But that reminds me; I should check on Vergil. With any luck, he should be discharged later today," Harvey said as he stood up from the sofa. "Laddy, let's go!"

"Aipom!" Laddy ran towards Harvey, up his back and eventually settled on his shoulders.

"Say hi to him for me!"

"Will do, sport," Harvey winked. "And Troy? You make doubly sure to avoid battling Adelina altogether, if only because of the J word. Okay?"

"Don't have to tell me twice," Troy laughed nervously. "Thanks, Dad." Harvey nodded and waved farewell as he left the lounge with his companion. Brent sat next to Troy and faced him apprehensively. Troy looked at his Simisage with a forced smile.

"I'm-I'm okay, Brent, really." Brent wasn't convinced, but patted his Trainer on the back lightly and smiled at him regardless.

"Simi."

Alexa closed the door behind her as she left the hotel room with Ryder and Xavier by her side. Jollie was happily nestled in Alexa's arms as she walked alongside her Lucario and Zoroark, down the dominantly white corridor and across the shiny tiled floor towards the elevator doors at the end of the hallway. The many hotel room doors lined on either side of the hall were all dark oak brown with different numbers engraved on them.

"So, tell us; do you think you'll be able to make things work with Keith again?" Xavier asked curiously.

"I'd drop him if I were you," Ryder said grumpily.

"Ryder, c'mon, man..."

"I'm sorry, but..." Ryder sighed. "Out of all the Pokémon he's met from our clan, I'm the first one; I've known him the longest and, well...I didn't think he was capable of such a thing..."

"To be fair...we were both stressed that day...and he did say he didn't mean what he said."

"Do you believe him?" Ryder asked, almost interrogatively. Jollie looked up at Alexa worriedly as she pressed the button next to the elevator doors.

"Honestly? I almost didn't," she said truthfully.

"What made you change your tune?" Xavier asked with interest as the doors opened; Alexa allowed the elderly couple out of the elevator first before attempting to enter it with her Pokémon, bidding the pair a 'good afternoon' as they passed one another. Alexa waited until the elevator doors closed after pressing the button with the capital G engraved on it before she spoke up again.

"Mostly because I admitted I didn't want to believe him," she replied as the elevator started moving down. "After today, I...I still have some trust issues with him, but...they're not as huge as they were that night."

"Oh, please! I saw the look on your faced when he kissed you!" Xavier said teasingly. "You still like him!"

"He did what?!"

"Yeah, Big Boss wasn't too happy about it either, bro," Xavier laughed.

"It-It just caught me off guard, that's all!" Alexa said shyly. "A-And just because I like him, it doesn't mean I have my full trust in him yet!"

"Oooooh, you admit you like him~!" Xavier said playfully.

"Don't mess with her head, okay?" Ryder said crabbily.

"Ryder, if I wanted the Protective Father figure around, I'd go back upstairs and get Dad," Alexa said wittily. Xavier chortled with amusement as the elevator doors opened, revealing the hotel's main lobby. It very nearly resembled a fusion of a department store and a palace. There was a small water feature at the foot of the two branching staircases that led to the first floor of the hotel, featuring six small fountain statues of a Goldeen, Feebas, Finneon, Luvdisc, Horsea and a Tympole near the front of the pool and a larger fountain statue of a Gorebyss in the centre of the pool. There was also a large statue of a beautiful Florges in the middle of the lobby, cleverly with real flowers making up the bouquet around its head. There was comfortable seating around the eye-catching statue, with the long reception desk not too far away. Alexa and her Pokémon, however, walked across this beautiful hybrid-looking lobby and headed straight for a cornered area with far more seats spread across the tiled flooring; they entered the hotel's coffee bar. All of the seats consisted of plush leather armchairs, all of which circled the same decently sized glass coffee table. Some hotel patrons were already relaxing in the coffee bar; all of them had some kind of hot beverage in front of them, but some were reading the newspaper with their coffees and a small handful were also enjoying some kind of hot snack. The delicious smell that dominated the corner could make anyone want to join the queue to the cash point; while Alexa's appetite failed to respond to the smell of freshly brewed coffee and toasted bread, she was still keen to get in line.

"You guys want anything specific?" Alexa asked finally.

"Nah, surprise me," Xavier grinned.

"I second that," Ryder nodded.

"Bun-bun!" Jollie added. Alexa handed Jollie over to Xavier.

"Xavier, can you and Jollie save us a table, please? I'll need Ryder's help getting everything over here."

"Sure thing," Xavier nodded as he and Alexa parted ways; Alexa kept an eye on Xavier until he found a table in a quiet area of the coffee bar. She took a mental note of his location as she joined the relatively small queue with Ryder.

"Why's Xavier so upbeat about you and Keith anyway?" Ryder asked in confusion, taking advantage of the Zoroark's absence.

"Seems Troy was able to give him a change of heart," Alexa replied. "What about you, Ryder? I can tell you're still angry at Keith, but-"

"I just...I just want you to be happy," Ryder said glumly as he and Alexa moved along the queue. Alexa smiled as she faced the barista in front of her.

"Hi, can I get the Poké Puff platter and a small cocoa, please?" she asked politely. The barista nodded as she processed Alexa's request through the cash register. She looked down at Ryder as she handed the barista the random twenty dollar bill she pulled out of her koban shaped wallet, completely ignoring the actual cost of her purchases, which, fortunately for her, didn't even come close to twenty dollars – or even ten dollars! "So, as long as I'm happy, you're happy?"

"Yep," Ryder nodded as Alexa accepted her change from the barista, slipping it into her wallet in a heartbeat. The pair moved along the queue as they waited for their goods. "That's what we all want; not just the clan, but your family, too. I mean, after all of the Tauros crap you've been through this past year...you deserve to be happy, even if Keith's not a part of it." Alexa had a hard time imagining her life without Keith; she spent so much time with his company, she'd pretty much forgotten what it was like before the two of them met in Ranger School. After accepting the cocoa and Poké Puff platter from a different barista, she smiled at Ryder as he began to levitate the three-tier cake stand with his cyan aura.

"Thanks, Ryder; I appreciate that," she said gratefully as she and Ryder approached Xavier's table. Ryder carefully placed the Poké Puff platter in the very middle of the table, where Xavier and Jollie immediately helped themselves to one of the Poké Puffs. Alexa sat down and took a sip from her creamy cocoa.

"Just a small one?" Xavier asked teasingly.

"Hey, give me a break, I already had one of these today," Alexa said defensively as she placed the porcelain mug down on the nearest coaster. "Anyway, Keith and I have another meeting tomorrow morning at the Route 4 coffee shop; anyone want to join me?"

"I'll tag along, but I'll chill in my Poké Ball; three's a crowd," Xavier winked.

"Yeah, well...I'll join and I want to stay out; I want to see the interaction between the two of you for myself," Ryder said distrustingly.

"You'd have plenty of company; Keith's taking all three of his partner Pokémon around with him, so you'll be able to meet Ava," Alexa smiled.

"Bun, bun, buneary!" Jollie said keenly, with her mouth full of cake. Alexa laughed.

"Yeah, I know; you want to join as well. And of course you'll stay out of your Poké Ball; I still want to help you evolve, you know that." Jollie finally swallowed her food.

"BUN!"

"Hey, here's a wild idea; why doesn't Jollie train the new kid?" Xavier proposed.

"I dunno," Alexa said with uncertainty. "Personally, I don't mind the idea, since I know with absolute certain that a baby Pokémon can battle incredibly well," she continued, smiling warmly at her Lucario as he licked the icing from his pink Poké Puff. "Keith, on the other hand, might not be as keen on the idea."

"I'm sure you can twist his arm," Xavier smirked.

"Besides, it's good for a Pokémon to train when they're young; I should know that better than any Pokémon," Ryder said as he wolfed his icing-free cake down in one bite, effectively swallowing it whole. "Hey, Alex, why don't you try one of these?" he suggested, handing her a small brown Poké Puff. Xavier was surprised when he saw Alexa taking the little macaroon in her hand. She compared the Poké Puff in her fingers to a lighter brown one on the cake stand and sniffed the one she held; it smelled like chocolate.

"Well...they ARE safe for human consumption..." Despite her hesitation, Alexa took a small bite from the cake; she took her time in eating the cake, trying to get a feel of its taste and texture before swallowing it. "...mm! I should learn how to bake these!" She offered the leftover Poké Puff to Ryder. "Wanna try it?"

"Yuck, no thanks; chocolate's not my thing," Ryder said with disgust. Xavier laughed.

"Here I thought chocolate was one of Lucario's favourite treats!"

"Not for THIS Lucario!" Ryder huffed, folding his arms. Alexa chuckled as she looked at the Poké Puff in her hand; she was tempted to finish it off, and she did admit she needed to eat more.

Harvey made his way into the Driftveil Pokémon Centre and headed to the front desk, passing the many other visitors scattered around the lobby; most were just resting from a long journey over the drawbridge, but there were a few who were waiting for news regarding their wounded Pokémon. Laddy took a keen interest in the many different Pokémon he saw among the Trainers; he was particularly in awe at the long red and gold lock of hair flowing from the Pyroar's head. Before he could make it to the front desk, however, Harvey almost bumped into another Trainer with a Gallade.

"Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to-...Naomi?!" Naomi looked up at Harvey in shock.

"Harvey! I-I, uh...I'm sorry!"  
"No, it's my fault; I didn't see you," Harvey replied awkwardly. Laddy and Steven waved happily to one another. "S-So, uh...what's up?"

"I just left Jason with the doctor; I don't know what's wrong with him, he's been sick since this morning. D-Don't get me wrong, I noticed it earlier on and gave him some medicine, but it didn't work." Harvey nodded.

"He'll be fine; Jason's a trooper," he said optimistically. "I'm just here to check on Vergil; he got into a pretty intense fight with Adelina's Jellicent."

"Adelina...?"

"Cross; from the Nimbasa Contest?"

"Oh, I see. Is Vergil...?"

"Heavy burns, but fine otherwise," Harvey said reassuringly. He sighed as his smile waned. "I'm, uh...I'm sorry about our last meeting..."

"No...I'm sorry for being so hard on myself about...well, everything..."

"C'mon, your confidence was shattered because of that jerk of an ex-boss; if anything, it's his fault that you're being hard on yourself."

"Why do you keep saying that?"

"Take him out of the equation and everything would've been perfectly fine between us. But the less said about him, the better for both of our self-esteems." Naomi smiled.

"Yes, you're right." Steven noticed how coy Naomi had become, but spotted her smile. "I...I think we should talk." Harvey was curious.

"Hm?"

"Colin, I'm off to get some groceries!" Hailey declared as she picked up the brown leather tote bag that hung from the banister near the front door. Colin left his office as Hailey placed the bag strap over her head and across her body. "Do we need anything?"

"Do we still need some more of Peggy's juice boxes?"

"No, we still have a case left," Hailey answered. "But I kind of meant along the lines of food items for dinner tonight."

"Lasagne, right? No, I don't think we need anything for tonight," Colin said, shaking his head.

"All right, then, I'm-" Knocking at the door suddenly interrupted Hailey's conversation with her husband. Confused, she opened the door and, to her surprise, Adelina stood in front of her with Huey. Huey spotted Charlotte as she approached the hallway and smiled suavely at her; the female Delcatty stuck her nose up at the flirtatious male as she walked away, but her rejection didn't bother Huey in the slightest. "Adelina!"

"Hello, Hailey," she greeted kindly. Colin was instantly suspicious of her kind demeanour.

"This is a bad time," he said bluntly.

"No, really, it's not," Hailey said to the cautious Colin. "We can nip this in the bud right now," she added as she almost dragged Adelina inside the house; Adelina was legitimately confused with Hailey's change of attitude, but looked down at Huey and winked at him regardless. Nobody noticed Huey returning said wink as Hailey closed the door and dumped her tote bag back on the banister as she led Adelina into the kitchen. "What do you want?"

"First of all, how is the darling Swablu? Is she all right?"

"She's with her parents now-"

"Her Altaria and my Salamence, by the way."

"Colin, shush," Hailey snapped quietly. "She's fine, Adelina."

"Oh, dear...what's ruffled your feathers?"

"You, Adelina," Hailey said nastily.

"What? Just because I've been telling you the truth this whole time?"

"Muk spit!"

"Colin, please; let me handle this," Hailey said insistently. "I don't understand you, Adelina; Eric's appeal did NOT backfire on purpose, yet you've constantly blamed me for what happened and then tried to deny it!"

"I would like to put it on record that I have not accused you of making your Bellossom's appeal backfire deliberately; all I said was that Eric's appalling display was the reason the Nimbasa Contest has been cancelled," Adelina explained calmly. "Honestly, dear, I strongly doubt it was a good idea for a Grass type to utilise Fire attacks anyway. You probably should have used your darling Altaria instead; she has such graceful moves, unlike your little weed of a Bellossom."

"I don't know what you're trying to do, but-" The nearby phone suddenly began to ring, attracting Hailey's attention. She excused herself as she left the room to pick the phone up from its base, which was left on the single oak table near the stairs. "Hello?" Hailey walked into Colin's office as she took the call, closing the door behind her. Taking advantage of the situation, Adelina walked over to Colin.

"Thank Arceus...I thought she'd never leave." Dexter wandered into the kitchen and kept a sceptic eye on Adelina's interaction with his Trainer's husband.

"What are you up to, Adelina?" Colin asked suspiciously. He became surprised when Adelina opened one of the buttons on her blouse, but felt his stomach plummeting when he saw the lustful smile on her face. "Adelina...?"

"What's wrong, Colin? Are you not interested in Figure Drawing?" she asked seductively as she approached the highly perturbed man.

"I'm-I'm not, uh, th-that kind of artist," Colin mumbled nervously. "I-I could never get the human anatomy right anyway..." He became even more flustered when Adelina leaned her body against his; Colin tried his hardest to maintain eye contact with her.

"How about I teach you?"

"I-" Before Colin could argue, Adelina pressed her lips against his. In that exact moment, Hailey returned to the kitchen after having returned the phone to its base; she was horrified to see her husband entangled with another woman – or, rather, the other way around.

"YOU!" Hailey grabbed a clump of Adelina's hair and dragged her away from the heavily alarmed Colin and, ultimately out of the kitchen.

Daniel, Daphne and Peggy were walking towards their home when they suddenly saw the front door opening; they were even more perplexed when they saw Hailey pretty much throwing Adelina out of the house.

"You come anywhere NEAR him again and I'll have no problems replacing your tongue with a forked one!" Hailey threatened before she slammed the door. Confused and concerned, Peggy and the twins raced inside the house and entered quietly, passing the leaving Adelina and Huey; however, once the kids were inside the house, Adelina and Huey walked back towards the house and listened carefully between the kitchen window and the front door.

"H-Hailey, I-"

"What the Muk was that all about?!" Hailey screamed angrily. "What did you say to her?!"

"What makes you think I led her on?!" Colin asked in horror.

"I didn't see you putting up a fight!"

"YOU try prying someone off of you when they're jamming their tongue down your throat!"

"URGH, Colin! I don't need that imagery! Arceus!" Distressed by the noise, Peggy fled the kitchen and stood near the front door, trying to get away from the argument.

"I'm sorry, Hailey, but she was the one who came onto me!"

"Stop fighting, for goodness' sake!" Daniel shouted. The parents suddenly looked at the twins in confusion; Daniel was infuriated, but Daphne looked anxious.

"Don't talk to us like that, Daniel!" Colin scolded.

"Let him be, he was trying to help!" Hailey yelled furiously. Daniel slapped his forehead in his palm as his parents continued to bicker.

"That doesn't mean he can talk to us like that!"

"This isn't about him, this is about Adelina!"

"YOU were the one who brought her into the house in the first place!"

Adelina chuckled as she overheard Colin arguing with Hailey and Daniel constantly attempting to break up the fight. She looked down at Huey as she walked passed the front door.

"That's another raw nerve touched," she said proudly. "Hopefully," she continued, looking towards the kitchen window. "I can break the whole family." Huey sniggered as he followed Adelina out of Nacrene City via Pinwheel Forest.

Inside the house, Peggy was left incredibly disturbed and distressed; she heard everything Adelina just said!

 _To be continued..._


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter Twenty Five - Tensions**

The next morning, Alexa was packing her Safari Ball backpack in her hotel bedroom, with Ryder and Jollie watching her with curiosity and intrigue, watching as she held her backpack upside down, pouring the bag's entire contents onto the bed; her six Poké Ball Capsules, three Seal pouches, several medicinal spray bottles and lukewarm bottles of water poured onto the bed. Alexa then raided the nearby belt bag and took out her koban wallet, tossing it straight into the backpack. Ryder picked up one of the clear blue capsules and examined it curiously.

"I forgot you had these."

"It's amazing what you find, isn't it?" Alexa laughed. She tossed one of the Seal pouches to her Lucario. "Here, why not decorate it?"

"What do they do?"

"You've seen what the Seals do; you saw my demo with Shandra's Poké Ball, remember?" Ryder smiled.

"Oh, yeah. Hey, Jollie should have one, too!"

"Bun! Bun!"

"Go for it," Alexa smiled as she handed another capsule and pouch to the excited Buneary. "I need to use the Seals for the other four capsules, so don't go overboard; three or four Seals is enough per capsule."

"Got it," Ryder nodded as he opened his pouch and poured all of the Seals inside onto the bed in front of him. The Seals came in different shapes and colours, including yellow lightning bolts, blue bubbles, orange fire, white confetti and purple petals. Jollie immediately claimed two of the pink heart seals and stuck them to her Poké Ball Capsule. Ryder stared at the remaining Seals, spoilt for choice, until he watched Alexa as she looked closely at the medical sprays sprawled on the bed. "Hey, Alex...?"

"Hm?"

"You don't mind if I call you Alexa from time to time, do you?" Alexa looked at Ryder in bewilderment.

"Why are you asking me? Of course I don't mind; it's my name!"

"I know, but...I've called you Alexa a couple of times when you got concussed; it hadn't dawned on me until recently."

"Ryder, it's not a big deal to me anymore; you just call me whatever you feel most comfortable with," Alexa said kindly as she placed all of the spray bottles inside her backpack. "Keenan started the whole 'Alex' thing anyway; he couldn't get the hang of saying my name when he was younger."

"Like Peggy?"

"Yeah, it's weird; Peggy got the hang of the Lexa part, but Keenan could only manage Alex," Alexa chuckled. "But I'm not too concerned about who calls me what anymore, so you do what you like."

"Thanks." Ryder picked up the red confetti seal and placed it onto his Poké Ball Capsule. "You looking forward to this meeting of yours?"

"I am, actually. It feels strange; I'm a little giddy about it."

"Hopefully, I'll find out why."

"So you're talking to Naomi now?" Hayden asked happily, holding his Xtransceiver in front of him; he was in the main lounge of the hotel room, talking with a cheerful Harvey and a deceptively happy Hailey.

"I don't understand what's gotten into her, but, honestly, I'm as giddy as a schoolboy right now," Harvey beamed. "When she said we should talk, I didn't think she meant socialising all over again."

"Huh; that's what Alexa and Keith are doing right now," Hayden said observantly. "But good for you!"

"At least your spouse is talking to you," Hailey said begrudgingly. Her brothers noticed her resentment.

"What's the matter with you all of a sudden?" Harvey asked in astonishment as Alexa and Ryder entered the room with Jollie sitting on Alexa's shoulder.

"Is it Adelina?" Hayden enquired.

"She's involved, yeah; she had the audacity to snog my husband!" Alexa was completely disturbed, but her Pokémon were confused; they didn't know a snog was another word for 'kiss'. Hayden and Harvey were horrified.

"In front of you?" Harvey asked.

"No, I caught them at it," Hailey replied, starting to sound distressed. Hayden finally noticed Alexa's presence and looked at her worriedly.

"You should go now," he said quietly. Alexa nodded as she led Ryder out of the hotel room. Harvey and Hailey were confused. "Sorry; that was Alexa."

"Still trying to keep her out of this Adelina crisis?" Harvey wondered.

"Yep."

"You should probably make sure Adelina doesn't stick her tongue down Keith's throat," Hailey said hatefully as she paced around her kitchen table. Annabelle roosted in one corner of the kitchen with a sleeping Piper on her back, watching her grouchy Trainer with extreme concern, although watching Hailey's pacing started to make the Altaria feel dizzy.

"If she does, she has serious issues."

"This is serious, Harvey," Hayden said firmly. "We have to try and make sure Adelina doesn't make things worse."

"Things can't GET any worse!" Hailey screamed furiously. "Colin and I haven't spoken since yesterday afternoon and...and Peggy hasn't even made eye contact with us since!"

"I'm not surprised; she's probably still shaken up from your argument with Colin."

"It was more than an argument, Harvey, it was verbicuffs!"

"That's not even a word."

"Harvey, enough with the jokes!" Hayden said sternly. "Hailey, you have to realise that it's not Colin's fault that-"

"Well, he didn't exactly fight back very well when she smothered him with her lipstick," Hailey said nastily.

"Maybe he just froze; maybe he didn't know how to react to it," Hayden presumed.

"He should've pushed her off of him and slapped the bitch!" Hailey exclaimed rudely.

"Calm down, Hailey, you're too worked up over this-"

"Of course I'm worked up! How would you feel if your supposed best friend stuck his tongue down Lily's throat?!" Hayden was incredibly offended by Hailey's hypothetical; he really wanted to argue back, but resisted the temptation.

"That's not going to help anything," Harvey said carefully. "Why don't you take some time to-"

"Oh, forget the both of you!" Hailey cried as she cut off communication with her brothers. She sat down and sighed shakily, burying her face in the palm of her hand. It wasn't until she heard the front door opening that Hailey lifted her head, but soon lowered it again as Colin walked into the kitchen with a grocery bag in each hand. Accompanying him was a Krookodile with three Pachirisu-like spikes at the end of his tail, who sat next to the worried Altaria as Colin pulled out a bottle of Lime Cola from one of the bags and placed it in front of his wife.

"Here." Hailey looked at the bottled drink in front of her before looking up at Colin; she was both confused and cautious.

"What's this for?"

"Drinking, what else?" Colin asked jokingly. "Look, I saw it and thought of you."

"You sure you're not trying to bribe forgiveness from me?" Hailey asked rudely. Colin sighed as he dumped the two grocery bags on the kitchen table.

"Here I thought I was being nice; I didn't expect to be grilled for bringing my wife her favourite drink," he complained as he stormed out of the kitchen. The Krookodile watched Colin with disappointment.

"What was that all about?" Naomi asked worriedly. She and Harvey seemed to be in her office at the Driftveil Star Hotel. Jason, Laddy and Vergil were nearby, eating their Pokémon food from the same ceramic food bowls and enjoying a conversation of their own; Vergil was heavily bandaged, with some of the bandages being over his left eye, but Jason and Laddy were physically unharmed. Harvey sighed.

"You heard her; Adelina sunk her claws into Colin."

"So I heard, but...is Hailey really the jealous type?"

"I wouldn't call it jealousy; she's angry because she doesn't think Colin objected to Adelina's advance."

"I see...is Adelina normally like that?"

"Hell if I know," Harvey shrugged. "But, from what I've seen, she certainly seems to be the flirty type. I'm partly speaking from personal experience here; not only has she invaded Hayden's personal bubble, but mine as well."

"Yikes..."

"I was more confused about it than anything, but poor Hayden looked more clueless than a Psyduck," Harvey chuckled. "Lily wasn't too happy about it, though."

"That doesn't surprise me; I wouldn't be happy about it either."

"Who would be happy to see another woman advancing on their lovers?"

"Fair point," Naomi nodded. "But why would Adelina do these things?"

"That," Harvey began. "Is what I want to know, too." Jason, Vergil and Laddy were just happy to see their Trainers having a civil conversation, all questionable subject matters aside.

Keith sat patiently at one of the coffee shop's numerous outdoor tables on Route 4. Robbie, Reese and Ava sat on the ground nearby as they, too, waited for the person Keith was intending to meet. Keith looked around and recalled the first time he sat at the table of the coffee shop he was in front of; it was where he questioned his ability of taking care of a Pokémon hatched from an egg and whether or not he was legally allowed to do so in light of not possessing an official Trainer Card. He smiled at Ava, Reese and Robbie; Reese was playing peekaboo with the little Pichu, which additionally amused the Sawsbuck she was sitting in front of. Keith's mind cleared as he watched the little game.

"Keith!"

All attention was drawn to Alexa as she and Ryder ran towards them, Alexa smiling and waving as she approached. Keith stood up and met Alexa with a friendly hug, which Alexa was more than happy to return. Jollie hopped off of Alexa's shoulder and straight into the arms of her surrogate big brother.

"Hey, you made it!"

"Am I too late?" Alexa asked as she looked at the Xtransceiver on her wrist. "No, I'm on time. How long have you been here for anyway?"

"Well, Robbie got us here quickly, so...I'd say no more than half an hour, give or take?" Keith finally noticed Ryder's presence; the Lucario looked up at him curiously. "Hi, Ryder."

"Hi." Jollie spotted Ava and waved happily at her. Ava nervously returned the gesture.

"Ryder, why don't you and Jollie sit with the Pokémon?" Alexa proposed, breaking the tension between him and Keith.

"Okay, but I'm still keeping an eye on you," Ryder said as he walked over to Robbie and Reese. He sat down next to them and placed Jollie on his lap. Keith and Alexa sat opposite one another at the table.

"I'm sorry about Ryder; he's mostly trying to make sure I don't get hurt again, but he's also curious about how we've been communicating lately."

"I don't blame him for it, though; like I said, I was an asshole."

"Let's not dwell on that now," Alexa said kindly. "We're not here for that."

"Ah, that reminds me," Keith smiled as he picked up a white plastic bag from the floor and placed it on the table, pushing it towards Alexa. "Here, I got this for you." Alexa smiled at Keith.

"Keith, honestly, you don't need to give me anything," she said modestly.

"If you don't want to consider it repayment for your favours, at least consider it a gift," Keith said persuasively. "Just...at least look at it?" Alexa looked at the bag in wonderment; her curiosity was starting to get the better of her. To Keith's delight, she at the very least took the bag in her hands and pulled it carefully towards her. She noticed the bag's content was heavier than she expected it to be and pulled out the item inside it; unwrapping the protective layer of paper revealed the Floette figurine Keith had purchased from the Nacrene City Museum. Seeing the beautifully sculpted and carefully painted figure in her hands left Alexa at a complete loss for words; she admired the care and dedication that went into every detail of the Floette and her pointy flower. Alexa was left speechless, both at how beautiful the figurine was and at the thought that went into the gesture; she knew that Keith bought a figuring of that particular Pokémon because she showed a particular adoration for Floette's pre-evolved form, Flabébé.

"Keith, it's...it's beautiful!"

"Yeah, I remembered that you have a thing for History, so I went to the museum in Nacrene to get you something relating to that," Keith smiled. "When I saw that, though...well, you know." Alexa stared joyously at the Floette figure in her hands.

"This Floette is part of one of the Kalos legends." Keith became curious; he was under the impression that it was just a normal Floette.

"Oh?"

"They say that this Floette died in a war that broke out in Kalos," Alexa explained. "But the human who befriended her built a machine that resurrected her at the cost of so many other Pokémon lives; upon discovering this, Floette left him, unable to cope with the guilt behind the cost of her resurrection." Keith was impressed by Alexa's knowledge and smiled. "Kalos Historians have unanimously given this particular Floette the nickname of 'Eternal Flower Floette' because not only was she granted eternal life following her resurrection, but presumably because the machine used to bring her back to life very much resembled the flower she holds."

"I swear, you're so well-versed it's almost frightening," Keith laughed. Alexa finally looked up at Keith, having stared adoringly at her gift during her tale.

"Sorry; I just...well, blame my Grandpa for that," she laughed. "Thank you so much, I love it."

"Ha, clearly!" Alexa sat the figurine next to her, taking care to place it out of the way of her elbow.

"So...what do you want to talk about?" she asked.

"Well, there's actually something I want to ask you about."

"Hm?"

"Why did you become a Pokémon Trainer in the first place?" Keith asked curiously. Alexa's smile died ever so slightly as she became serious with him, which concerned him a little.

"Because I was homeschooled, I never had any friends of my own," she answered truthfully. "Granted, I DID – and still do – have my family and my parents' Pokémon, but I wanted friends of my own. When my Grandpa told me about Pokémon Trainers and how they travel to different places for different reasons, I thought I could meet new people and Pokémon if I travelled myself, so that's exactly what I did the day after my tenth birthday."

"Why the day after?"

"Mum and Dad gave me a surprise party after a shopping spree in Goldenrod Department Store and a couple of hours at the Nimbasa Amusement Park, which delayed my travel plans by a day."

"Ah. By the way, how come your starter's from a different region to your own?"

"Because my parents and Grandpa have all of Johto's starter Pokémon between them; I didn't want to copy them. Not that it's any real excuse, but..." Keith felt anxious.

"I-I wasn't criticising you, it was just an observation." Alexa nodded.

"Yeah, I know."

"But I take it you made friends?"

"Most of them are my entire Pokémon clan, yes," Alexa chuckled. "I have made other friendships with Pokémon Trainers, but I ended up losing contact with them."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"It's okay," Alexa smiled as she snuck a peek at Ryder and Jollie; they were happily engaged in a light-hearted conversation with Robbie, Reese and even Ava. "Now I have more friends than I ever thought I was going to have...even if most of them are Pokémon."

"Nothing wrong with that, is there?"

"Well, I'm bilingual, so...no, not at all." Keith laughed.

"I almost forgot you were bilingual! So...that means you can understand Pokémon then? I mean...what is it you hear when, say, a pair of Pidgey are singing in the trees?"

"Most of the time, they're not singing at all; they're talking. Though the conversations vary from pair to pair..." Keith was left astounded, but was relieved when a barista approached the table to take an order.

Harvey and Naomi walked down one of Castelie's many corridors until they stopped to knock at one of the hotel doors. They waited patiently until Hayden answered the door; their presence surprised him, but it was a pleasant surprise that put a smile on his face.

"Harvey! Naomi! What're you doing here?"

"We wanted to see you," Harvey replied. "And surprise you to boot."

"You certainly did that," Hayden laughed as he allowed Harvey and Naomi inside the room. "But I take it you want to talk about Hailey?"

"Yeah, we do," Harvey sighed as he and Naomi sat down on the sofa. "It's not like her to react so viciously."

"And I'm worried about the other woman involved in all of this," Naomi added timidly; after almost a decade of shying away from contact with Harvey's family, being in the presence of his younger brother left her feeling awkward and even out of place. Hayden nodded.

"We all are; we don't know what she's doing or why she's doing it – all we know is that she holds Hailey accountable for the Nimbasa Contest's cancellation."

"Oh, dear..."

"Worse still, it's been destroying Hailey's confidence ever since," Harvey continued. "And just when she's got the fire back in her belly, all of this happens."

"Oh, poor Hailey...!"

"Yes, well, we're going to do whatever we can to help her out," Hayden said eagerly. "The last thing I want is for Hailey's relationship with Colin to end so nastily over nothing."

"I say we go down there right now and set things right," Harvey proposed.

"I don't know, Harvey...what if we make things even worse?" Naomi asked worriedly. Lily and Keenan walked out of one of the hotel bedrooms and were mildly alarmed to see Naomi, and sitting next to Harvey, no less.

"Naomi!" Naomi looked towards Lily and Keenan; she was surprised, yet happy, to see them.

"Lily, Keenan, hello!" Keenan was absolutely confused; he didn't recognise the black-haired lady next to his uncle.

"What's all of this about?" Lily asked Hayden.

"We're thinking of going to see Hailey – and maybe Colin, if he's there – to see if we can help them through their issues," Hayden replied.

"Is that really the best idea right now?" Lily wondered. "I mean, when Keith and Alexa had their arguments a few months ago, we took a step back and they managed to work things out for themselves."

"Maybe so, but the cause of their arguments didn't intend to do so," Hayden counter-argued. "I don't know if Adelina did what she did deliberately or what, but I don't want her to ruin Hailey's family as well as her self-esteem!"

"I still don't know..."

"Lily, it's going to be okay; Naomi will make sure we don't say something stupid," Harvey winked as he placed his arm around his ex-wife's shoulders. Lily was amazed to see the friendly interaction between the two of them, but Keenan was still flummoxed.

"I just hope Hailey will be all right... Anyway, we're off; we're going to Castelia Library for today's study session," Lily smiled.

"Take care of yourselves," Hayden cautioned. "Watch out for Adelina; if you see her-"

"Just ignore her; we know, Hayden," Lily smiled sweetly, planting a kiss on her husband's cheek as she and Keenan passed him as they left the hotel room.

"Was Keenan all right? He looked completely confused," Naomi said shyly.

"He doesn't remember you, that's all," Hayden said reassuringly. "If you intend to stick around, that'll change, no doubt."

"Anyway, shall we get to Hailey's before she and Colin end up at each other's jugulars?" Harvey asked eagerly.

"Yep," Hayden nodded. "The sooner we get there, the better."

"Steven knows Teleport; I think he can get us there," Naomi suggested quietly. Harvey smiled at her.

"Make it so."

The Striaton Academy playing field was bustling with activity; it was recess, and the many school children were each engaged in numerous playful activities, some of which included skipping with skipping ropes, playing soccer and even playing on handheld video game consoles, which was what one group in particular was taking part in. Peggy wandered around the playing fields, still deeply concerned and shaken up about what she heard from Adelina when she came home to arguing parents. She purposely ignored her usual group of friends as she began to ponder the words from Adelina's mouth and, more importantly, what to do with what she knew. She approached the only tree in the playing field, where her twin siblings sat like they usually did; Daphne was engaged in some mathematics homework she was set earlier in the day, but Daniel was vigorously searching through his carbon grey gadget for something. Noticing how intensely focused Daniel looked, Peggy approached her siblings with caution, but it was Daphne who noticed her sister first.

"Hey, Pegs," she greeted happily. Daniel glanced up from his device and at his sister.

"Something wrong?" he asked.

"Well...I'm...I'm worried about Mummy and Daddy..."

"We both are, Pegs," Daphne said sadly.

"The only reason there's tension between them was down to a third party intervention," Daniel said meanly as he looked down at his device again; the gadget showcased a list of Psychic type Pokémon, displayed in numerical order, that Daniel was looking through one Pokémon at the time. He scrolled down from Drowzee to its evolved form, Hypno and proceeded to read the information displayed about the Hypnosis Pokémon. "I'm just annoyed that they can't see that they're destroying each other over nothing." Daniel's presumption only served to make Peggy feel more anxious.

"I know that, but don't worry Peggy any more than she already is," Daphne said quietly.

"Um...about that..." The twins looked up at their baby sister in confusion.

"What's the matter?" Daniel wondered.

"I...did it again."

"Did what?" Daphne asked worriedly.

"Heard something I shouldn't have," Peggy said reluctantly. "From Adelina."

"I thought she was long gone?" Daniel assumed. "What did she say? Can you remember?"

"...I-I don't..." Peggy felt even more tense than before she even spoke to her siblings.

"It's okay, sweetie, nobody's going to be angry with you," Daphne said comfortingly, setting her homework aside to sit Peggy on her lap. "But what you heard might give us a clue about what's going on with Mum and Dad; if you can tell us, we might be able to do something about them." Comforted by Daphne's kind words, Peggy took a deep breath.

"I-I heard her saying...she hopes to break the whole family..." Daniel and Daphne stared at each other with wide eyes; their troubles seemed to have just taken a turn for the worst.

 _To be continued..._


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter Twenty Six – Foreboding**

"Are you sure that's what she said?" Daniel asked quickly. Peggy nodded slowly in confirmation, which only added to Daphne's anxiety.

"Why would she even want that?"

"Honestly? I don't buy it," Daniel said in a huff.

"I-I'm not lying!" Peggy cried. Daniel shook his head.

"It's not you I'm doubting."

"Huh?"

"Those are Adelina's words, correct?" Daniel asked again. Once more, Peggy nodded in response. "Then who's to say that those words are genuine? At this point, how are we supposed to know when she's telling the truth?"

"Even if that's the case, what does she mean by 'the whole family'?" Daphne asked worriedly. "Does she mean just our family or does she mean the entire family?"

"I don't understand."

"I mean, was Adelina talking about just us or do Uncles Harvey and Hayden's families come into the picture as well?"

"Oh! Um...I don't know..."

"It's rather ambiguous," Daniel mused. "But, still...I don't think we need to worry about that; as far as I'm concerned, I don't trust Adelina to tie her own shoelaces."

"But what if she was telling the truth?" Peggy asked sadly. "Does she mean she wants Mummy and Daddy to be apart?"

"I don't know, Peggy, but let's try and keep that from happening, eh?" Daphne smiled feebly.

"That shouldn't be too hard...implying they'll even listen to us..."

"That shouldn't be too hard either," Daphne winked. "Don't worry about a thing, Peggy, things will be okay."

"But-"

"Oi, Swapped Eyes!" Daphne and Daniel turned their attention to the incoming group of students who were smirking nastily at them as they approached. They were three students, all boys, wearing their uniforms rather sloppily with their shirts un-tucked and unbuttoned at the collar and their sweatshirts tied around their waists. "Watcha doing?"

"I don't think that's any concern of yours," Daniel responded bluntly to the brunette.

"I don't think that's any concern of yours," the blonde repeated mockingly, imitating Daniel's accent very poorly. Peggy remained quiet in the presence of the intimidating boys.

"Just get out of here; I'm sure there's a fat kid somewhere for you to prey on," Daniel said rudely.

"That's not very nice," the black-haired boy remarked, feigning his dismay.

"Neither are you," Daniel said spitefully.

"Just ignore them, we have better things to concern ourselves with," Daphne said quietly. However, the boys all heard her.

"Oh, right, your Mom and Dad, right?" Peggy and the twins faced the bullies with surprise.

"How did you-"

"Does it matter?" the brunette asked arrogantly. Daniel stood up and scowled at the bullies.

"Of course it matters! It's nobody else's business but ours, why the hell do you know about it?!"

"Everyone knows about The Swap Eye Kids," the brunette grinned sinisterly. Daniel growled under his breath; the last thing he wanted was someone else attempting to degrade him for something he had no control over. "So...what are your Mom and Dad fighting about?"

"That...isn't...your...concern..!" Peggy could easily see how hard Daniel was trying to hide his anger; his fists were clenched so tightly his fingernails could pierce his skin at any moment.

"There's already a rumour going around that your Mom has another guy in her life," the blonde said teasingly. Peggy and Daphne were perplexed; the fight Hailey and Colin had was about another woman, so how did that rumour come about? Daniel lost his temper even more as he clenched his teeth angrily. "Or...is it the other way around? Huh; I forgot which it was," the blonde continued tormentingly. Daniel clenched his fists even tighter, cracking his knuckles a little, immensely worrying Peggy further and even Daphne became concerned.

"Hey, Daph, you have a good memory; which was it again?" the brunette asked tauntingly. Daniel suddenly snapped.

Keith and Alexa were still at the coffee shop on Route 4, in the middle of elevenses; Keith had a mocha glass next to him and a buttered fruit scone in front of him while Alexa just had a glass of hot chocolate in front of her, clasping it with both hands for warmth. Ryder and Jollie were still conversing with Robbie, Reese and Ava, but they continued their conversation over a platter of Poké Puffs and a glass bottle of MooMoo Milk each, all of the bottles having a plastic straw with them.

"So that's the only necklace you wear besides that amulet Rhythmi found?" Keith enquired, looking at the emerald rhombus hanging from Alexa's neck.

"Well, I don't really wear the amulet often...or even at all; the chain just came with the amulet when I had the wing fragment preserved," Alexa replied quietly. "But this necklace is a different story," she smiled as she placed her slender fingers over her emerald. "I received it on my sixteenth birthday from my Dad and Grandpa; it belonged to my Grandpa's wife, my Dad's mother."

"So your Grandma?"

"Yep."

"What was she like?"

"I just know that she's where I get my looks from." Keith was puzzled at her vagueness.

"How is that all you know about her?"

"She died before I was conceived," Alexa answered bluntly.

"Oh...I'm...sorry to hear that."

"It's okay, don't worry about it. In any case, this is the only necklace I really wear; for some reason, I don't like to wear a different one." Keith noticed Alexa's lack of food item and, now realising how slender Alexa's arms and fingers were, became concerned.

"Are you sure you don't want anything to eat?"

"I would have ordered something if I did, wouldn't I?" Alexa asked cautiously.

"Sorry, it's just-"

"Keith, I'm not going to waste away," Alexa said bluntly. Keith looked at her worriedly.

"But you're underweight."

"And?"

"It's not healthy."

"I'm aware of that," Alexa said begrudgingly. Ryder looked back at Alexa, noticing her change in mood.

"And I'm worried about you."

"Relax, will ya? I've always been underweight by a pound or two ever since I started travelling seven years ago; a pound or two isn't going to kill me off." To Alexa's confusion, Keith tore his scone in half; she noticed how solemn he looked as he held out the scone half in front of her.

"If you must be underweight, then...please don't let it be by a stone or two." Alexa accepted Keith's gift with slight hesitation, but smiled at him sweetly all the same.

"Thank you."

"Hey, this is your vacation, right? That's a reason to treat yourself all on its own!" Keith grinned. Ryder, having witnessed Keith's act of kindness, smiled; now he understood Xavier's change of heart.

Hailey begrudgingly invited Hayden, Harvey and Naomi into her kitchen, where they all, except Harvey, proceeded to sit around the central table. Harvey observed as Hailey prepared to make hot beverages for her guests; while she had no problem with the gesture in itself, it was clear to Harvey that his baby sister was in a very bad mood.

"What happened this morning?" Harvey asked carefully.

"Nothing; it's not important," Hailey replied quickly.

"Then why are you being so cagey?"

"Harvey, this isn't helping," Hayden cautioned.

"I'm kind of surprised to see you here, Naomi; haven't seen you in almost a decade," Hailey said observantly.

"Well, I, uh... No, that doesn't matter right now."

"She's right; we're here to talk about you, not Naomi," Harvey corroborated.

"What's to talk about?" Hailey questioned as she poured the freshly boiled water into the mugs in front of her, giving each one approximately the same amount of water. "Colin and I are just having a disagreement, that's all. You know what a disagreement is, right, Harvey?" she asked rudely as she poured milk into three of the four mugs before her.

"That's uncalled for," Hayden said disapprovingly. "I know you're in a bad mood, but that's no reason to vent your frustration onto other people."

"You were the ones who wanted to talk to me, so deal with it," Hailey grumbled as she placed the hot mugs onto the table, sighing as she sat down. "I'm sorry...things...haven't gotten any better since our conversation over the Xtransceiver..."

"So what happened?" Harvey asked again.

"It was stupid...Colin came home and bought some Lime Cola for me; I thought it was a bribe of sorts when he was trying to do something nice..."

"I didn't take you for the sceptical type."

"I'm not, Hayden, but...I dunno..." Everything suddenly went quiet as Colin walked into the kitchen with an empty mug, a wooden pencil over his ear and his Phantump following almost his every movement.

"Hey, guys, Naomi."

"Colin," Hayden greeted politely.

"What're you doing here?"

"Funnily enough, we're here to talk to you and Hailey about...well, you and Hailey." Colin quickly made his second mug of coffee before attempting to leave; it was clear that Colin was still heavily despondent about the fight he and Hailey had the day before.

"I don't have time for this." Harvey waited for Colin to pass him before quickly and firmly, yet gently, grabbing the architect's arm.

"Yes, you do," Harvey insisted as he virtually sat Colin down at the kitchen table before finally sitting down himself, sitting next to his ex-wife. "Now that you're both here, we can finally get down to business."

"Did you stay standing just for that?" Hayden asked in wonderment.

"Pretty much," Harvey shrugged.

"So, what is it you want to say to us?" Colin asked grumpily.

"We don't want you to throw away everything you've built together because of some third party intervention," Naomi said worriedly. "...I don't want you to make the same mistake I did..."

"That was different; your boss was sexually harassing you," Hailey said gently. "Colin, on the other hand, had a choice in the matter," she added crabbily, glaring spitefully at her husband.

"Everybody reacts in different ways; some people can escape from the situation instantly, but others just freeze. Colin, could you help how you reacted to the situation you were in?" Hayden asked.

"Not really; I mean, she was being as clingy as a Klefki holding its keys," Colin replied timidly. "Kind of surprised Hailey was able to pry her off of me to be honest," he chuckled.

"How do you feel about how you reacted?" Naomi wondered.

"Horrid," Colin admitted, much to Hailey's astonishment. "In hindsight, I...should've done anything to get her off of me as soon as I could."

"That's how I felt," Naomi said sympathetically. "And I felt so horrible I blamed myself for letting myself get into that situation in the first place, regardless of what Harvey said." Now Colin and Hailey felt bad for fighting so violently. "In the end, I thought it would be better if I divorced him; I had no faith in myself at the time and...I didn't want to betray him again." Harvey pitied Naomi.

"What she's trying to say is...don't let what happened to us happen to you; let your marriage turn to soggy ashes because some intervening freak of nature stuck their oar in," Harvey concluded. Hailey and Colin faced one another from opposite ends of the table and smiled.

"I'm sorry about this morning, Colin," Hailey apologised gracefully. "And thank you for the drink; I'll have it with my lunch."

"I thought you threw it away," Colin laughed. "...and I'm sorry about yesterday and this morning...hopefully, it won't happen again."

"I doubt it will," Harvey smiled. "You two have been together for so long it's hard for me to even imagine you apart!" Colin looked towards Harvey and Naomi curiously.

"Y'know, you two are still as strong a front as you were over twenty years ago; kind of surprised it took you so long to get back together like this."

"Actually, we showed a united front after Troy almost drowned," Harvey said hesitantly.

"You mean after that Jellicent almost killed him?" Hailey asked carefully. Naomi appeared to be anxious at the very mention of the incident in question, but Harvey nodded.

"It didn't help that Brent lost his arm in trying to rescue Troy either...I swear, if Mac hadn't used Solarbeam..."

"How did you find out? Uh, if you don't mind my asking..." Colin said shyly.

"Zane," Harvey replied simply.

"As soon as Harvey found out, he called me and we met him at the Nuvema General Hospital...it killed me to see Troy so scared and distraught...!"

"Even though we were – and still are – divorced at the time, we were still his parents; parents should always be there for their kids and show a united front when the situation calls for it, which is what we did," Harvey said proudly. Nobody noticed the Beautifly flying away from the kitchen window, but the house phone suddenly rang, attracting everyone's attention. Hailey quickly approached the phone, heaving a disgruntled sigh.

"I thought I blocked cold callers from reaching this number," she said grumpily before retrieving the phone. "Hello, Hawkstone residence. Hm? Striaton Academy?"

Lily and Keenan sat at a large table in the middle of a highly spacious library; tall bookshelves lined the walls of the entire room, with ladders placed carefully next to each one to allow access to the books stacked on the higher shelves. There were numerous plush chairs strategically positioned throughout the library in addition to the numerous spaces specifically designated for reading groups, some with a small shelving unit exclusively displaying kids' books. On top of the table Lily and Keenan were sitting at were numerous text books, including a chemistry, language and literature, geography and history textbook, and plenty of stationery scattered in between. Lily and Keenan were constantly referring to the open mathematics textbook in front of them while Keenan was writing notes on the piece of paper in front of him. Keenan ordinarily had fun with his studies, but Lily noticed that her son wasn't as thrilled as he normally was.

"You're still worried about the situation at hand, aren't you?"

"Partly," Keenan replied. "But I don't know who that lady was...the one with Uncle Harvey."

"Ah." Lily smiled coyly. "Well...you were only three years old when you last saw her, so that's not surprising; she's your Aunt, Naomi."

"If she's our Aunt, how come I can't remember her?"

"She's divorced from Harvey nine years ago and hasn't spoken to the rest of the family since...until today, apparently," Lily explained with a small chuckle. "Nonetheless, you needn't worry about the family situation right now; I know it's hard not to, but it really is nothing you need to concern yourself with." Keenan appeared to be more worried than before.

"But what if there's more to it than just blind finger-pointing?" Lily laughed.

"You and your sister are so alike it's adorable. But, honestly, your Father and I will let the both of you know if the situation does turn out to be worse than initially presumed." Keenan sighed silently with relief as he smiled.

"Thanks." Suddenly, to Keenan and Lily's surprise, the sound of wind chimes was heard, echoing throughout the entire library. Ignoring the onlookers staring at her masterfully, Lily politely excused herself from the table and quickly headed for the library's main doors to take her incoming Xtransceiver call. Taking advantage of his mother's absence, Keenan looked under the table, where Iara sat patiently at his feet with the morning newspaper in her mouth. Keenan took the newspaper from his Eevee-sized Vapoeron before she hopped onto her Trainer's lap and proceeding to hang from his shoulder. Keenan read the front page; the main article was concerning the cancelled Nimbasa Pokémon Contest again, a large coloured photograph of Eric's out of control Hidden Power/Petal Dance combination taking up most of the page. Iara stared at the photograph while Keenan read the article next to it.

"The Nimbasa City Contest, which took place on Sunday, was cancelled due to stage damage following an appeal that- yeah, yeah, we know this already," Keenan muttered grumpily as he skimmed through the rest of the article; he already knew everything it detailed, so why was he reading it in the first place?

"Por!" Iara pointed to a small section of the photograph in alarm. Keenan examined the specific part of the photo his partner was so concerned about and eventually discovered...something wasn't right with it.

Both Keith and Alexa placed their now empty glasses on the coffee table and smiled contently. They relaxed in silence for a few seconds before Keith finally spoke up.

"So...what now?" Keith asked. "Lunch in Nimbasa?"

"Nah, I'm bored of Nimbasa," Alexa replied. "Had lunch there twice already."

"Oh. Well...is there any other place to have lunch?"

"There's always Castelia City," Alexa proposed.

"Do you know any restaurants in Castelia?"

"There's at least one I know about."

"Doesn't your Dad have a mall in Unova or something?"

"Well...he doesn't own Shopping Mall Nine on Route Nine, but he is working on establishing his Poké Marts in the Unova region...even though some refuse to branch away from the Pokémon Centres and said work is on hold while we're all on holiday..."

"That...doesn't answer my question, though," Keith laughed.

"I'm just trying to think," Alexa said quietly. "If I remember correctly, my Dad did establish a department store in the old office building opposite Castelia's Gym."

"Well, that's something we can look forward to if you're right," Keith smiled as he stood up from his chair.

"I think his decision for that was because he didn't want anything to do with Shopping Mall Nine...that and he was baffled about how a city as populated as Castelia went without a department store for so long..." Alexa suddenly looked up at Keith in confusion; he was standing next to her with his hand held out to her. Alexa took his hand in hers as she stood up from her seat, blushing at Keith's act of chivalry. "Thanks."

"No problem. Oh, by the way, does this alleged mall have a food court?"

"Dad's department stores all have food courts; the restaurants in said food courts vary from department store to department store. And, I swear, if I say department store one more time I'll bite my tongue." Keith laughed.

"I can do that for you if you'd prefer."

"Keith!" Keith laughed even harder.

"Chill out, I'd be gentle."

"That's not the issue!" Alexa complained, hiding her heavily blushing face from him. Keith laughed again as the Pokémon approached him, aware that Keith and Alexa were preparing to depart.

"Anyway, I thought I'd ask; I just thought we could have a bit of a shopping trip before lunch." Alexa faced Keith, managing to get over her embarrassment, and smiled at him.

"That's a neat idea; it'd be like our first date." Keith nodded.

"That's what I was thinking," he said as he held his arm out to her. Alexa took his arm gently and almost cuddled it as the pair began to walk towards Castelia City. "Alexa?"

"Hm?"

"Does Castelia have a restaurant that sells herring?" Keith asked.

"Probably; Castelia's pretty big on seafood," Alexa replied, almost dreamily as she held Keith's arm. Robbie and Reese smiled as the Sawsbuck followed the teens; Reese sat on Robbie's head while Jollie and Ava continued a conversation while sitting on his back. Ryder walked alongside the stag until he suddenly spotted the hovering...Pokémon? The silhouette in the sky was obviously that of a Bug type Pokémon, but, at a glance, Ryder couldn't identify which Bug type the silhouette belonged to, and the Pokémon flew away before Ryder had any hope of identifying it. He watched as the figure sped off in the direction of Nimbasa City; Ryder watched it flee cautiously as he continued to follow his friends.

Troy whistled a cheerful tune as he walked into Striaton City from the neighbouring Dreamyard with a basket of different coloured berries under one arm. Lukie walked alongside him, carrying a slightly smaller basket of berries on his head, looking as goofy as ever. The cheerfulness turned to confusion when Troy and Lukie saw Hailey and Colin leaving Striaton Academy with a shaken up Peggy, a guilt-ridden Daphne and a bruised Daniel. Troy and Lukie approached the family, growing more concerned as the tension became more evident to them.

"Hey! You guys okay?" Troy asked. Daniel looked at his eldest cousin with compete distaste; the glasses lens in front of his heavily bruised and slightly closed left eye was cracked, which alarmed Troy even further. "Whoa, what happened to you?!" Daniel huffed as he pushed his half-broken glasses up his nose, attempting to act casual. Troy also noticed the bruises on Daniel's knuckles and immediately presumed Daniel got into some sort of scuffle.

"Just playground troubles, nothing out of the ordinary." Troy was utterly baffled at how calm Daniel was despite his clear injuries.

"Nothing out of the ordinary?! How can you say that?! You let those guys get to your head again!" Daphne cried. Troy blinked; he was clearly missing something.

"They can make fun of me all day, but I won't have them drag you down with me."

"It was just a question! A joke one, sure, but it was just a dumb question!"

"Daphne, will you please calm down?" Hailey asked. Her voice was quivering, indicating her increasing stress.

"They were almost in a full-scale brawl, Hailey; of course they're going to be scared," Colin said defensively.

"You don't think I know that?!" Hailey asked spitefully. Troy watched the family tension unfolding and became increasingly concerned. Lukie just looked on in bewilderment.

The Beautifly flew across the sky and down towards a posh-looking coffee shop in a quaint city that seemed to pay a lot of respect for Dragon types, as one of the buildings in the far corner of the city had its exterior modelled after a creature closely resembling a Dragon Pokémon. Adelina sat at one of the only four outdoor coffee tables with a tall glass of latte, while Huey lay near her, enjoying yet another dark brown iced Poké Puff. Adelina watched in confusion as the Beautifly flew towards her and whispered something in her ear. After the Beautifly moved in front of her, Adelina grinned.

"Is that so? That's very interesting...I can work with that."

"Beautifly?" Beautifly asked. Adelina remained silent for a few moments before smiling sinisterly at the butterfly Pokémon.

"Not right now, baby...it's easier – and will be more entertaining – to work with your first bit of gossip."

 _To be continued..._


	27. Chapter 27

**Chapter Twenty Seven – Suspicions**

Lily sighed quietly as she hastily strode towards Keenan's table in the Castelia Library; she hadn't seemed to notice that Keenan wasn't studying – either that or she didn't seem to mind or care that he wasn't.

"Sorry about the interruption, sweetie," she apologised quietly. "That was your Father." Keenan looked up from the newspaper photograph he and Iara were staring at and faced her in confusion.

"Did something happen?"

"The twins have...they've had some bully troubles at the academy again," Lily said sincerely.

"You mean they haven't nipped it in the bud yet?" Keenan asked with distaste.

"The bigger problem is...they've been sent home, Peggy included."

"Why?" Keenan asked suspiciously.

"I don't know the full details; I just know that it has something to do with-"

"No, I mean, why was Peggy sent home as well?" Keenan asked clearly.

"Like I was saying, I just know that it has something to do with Daniel being suspended for the day," Lily concluded. Keenan was surprised; Daniel was usually mild-mannered or, at the very least, unwilling to let his feelings cloud his judgement – whatever brought on this suspension must have been enough to make Daniel act out of character.

"Are they okay?"

"I don't know," Lily answered truthfully. "As soon as the call came through, Hailey and Colin made a bee line for Striaton Academy faster than your Father could bat an eyelid. I can't say we wouldn't have done the same if you or your sister were in Daniel's predicament, but..."

"This will only add to Hailey's anxiety." Lily nodded in agreement.

"I was planning to visit Hailey after we're done here; would you like to join me?" Keenan chuckled a little.

"I don't think Daniel would appreciate my company, but I can see how the girls are doing at least." Lily nodded.

"By the way, where did you get that newspaper?"

"Oh, uh, I had Iara sneak it out of the hotel this morning; I noticed the Contest was the main headline again."

"They really couldn't find anything new to report on?" Lily asked in wonderment as she returned to her seat next to Keenan. "What's really bothering you about it?"

"I keep suspecting foul play, but look at this," Keenan said as he pointed to a particular part of the photograph Iara had directed his attention to previously. Lily looked at where Keenan was pointing to and, after carefully examining it, was left highly flummoxed.

Keith waited outside the ladies' changing rooms inside a department store clothing shop with a couple of carrier bags sitting on the floor next to him. His attire had changed completely; he was now wearing a thin grey long-sleeved shirt underneath a navy blue short-sleeved, T-shirt, grey jeans and black shoes with his dog tags hanging over his shirts for all to see. He waited patiently, trying to ignore the idiotic gossiping from other customers, most of the gossipers being elderly ladies talking about the Nimbasa Contest "scandal", until he heard Alexa exiting the changing booth she previously locked herself in; when she emerged, she showed off her new costume choice of a brown crop top underneath a loose-fitting neon green T-shirt with blue denim shorts and black zipped knee-high boots. Keith smiled as Alexa gave him a twirl to show off her clothes even more.

"So, what do you think?"

"Looks nice," Keith said simply. "But..."

"But..?" Alexa was further perplexed when Keith managed to sneak into the changing room without any members of staff seeing him.

"I think it can be improved," he elaborated. Alexa examined her garments; ignoring the store price labels on the clothing, there was nothing wrong with the condition of any of the items.

"How so?"

"Well...personally, I think you look better with very few clothes on," Keith smirked. "Or, maybe...none at all?" Alexa blushed intensely as she looked away from him.

"Urgh, Keith!" Keith laughed at her reaction. "That is not...just...why?!"

"You can tell I'm pulling your leg, can't you?"

"Yes, but that's not the point!" Keith laughed slightly harder as he saw Alexa's attempts to get his tongue in cheek remark out of her head. "J-Just...geez!" Keith managed to calm himself down a little bit, but he still had to keep himself from laughing; he truly hadn't expected her reaction to be an entertaining one.

"But, seriously, though, maybe the grey one would look better?" Alexa sighed to herself as she gave Keith a kind smile.

"Thanks for the more helpful suggestion," she said with slight cheek. "I'll go and try that," she said as she made her way back into the booth. Keith hastily shifted the carrier bags into the changing room threshold before he quickly caught up to Alexa before she closed the booth door behind her, much to her alarm.

"Maybe I should help you," he said suavely.

"Wha—Keith!" Alexa felt Keith's hand around her waist as he closed and locked the booth door behind them both.

Hayden, Harvey and Naomi finally arrived at the city from the Skyarrow Bridge; the city was as lively as one would expect a city to be, with floods of people and vehicles passing through with little to no regard for anyone other than themselves, which, more often than not, created brief conflicts between drivers and pedestrians.

"Hayden, Naomi and I are gonna head back to Driftveil," Harvey announced suddenly as the group passed one of the city's Pokémon Centres. Hayden smiled at his elder brother.

"Sure, you go ahead; I'm just going to catch up with Lily anyway."

"You sure you don't mind?" Naomi inquired.

"Hey, if my bro says it's okay, then it's okay," Harvey said cheerfully. "We'll talk later, okay?"

"No doubt," Hayden nodded. "See you later," he added as he walked down the road closest to the Pokémon Centre. Harvey and Naomi nodded at one another as she released her Gallade from his Poké Ball, which quickly resulted in all three of them disappearing in a brief flash of white light.

Hayden surveyed his surroundings as he walked down the road, additionally taking care to avoid the more careless of pedestrians passing him with no thought for anyone around them; seeing all of those tall buildings made for a refreshing change of scenery for him. As he approached the library, he spotted Lily, Keenan and Iara exiting the building and ran towards them.

"Finished already?" Lily and Keenan smiled at Hayden as he approached.

"Hi, honey! What's going on?"

"Since Hailey and Colin are having to deal with the twins for the time being, Harv and I decided to leave them to their own devices for now," Hayden replied, losing his smile. "I swear, things are starting to get out of hand," he said, scratching the back of his head. "And with my meeting tomorrow-"

"Things will be fine, honey," Lily smiled reassuringly. "I'll be on hand if Hailey needs anything. Oh, but...Keenan and I were going down to visit them in a little while...now I'm wondering if we'd be intruding..."

"I don't see the harm in a more friendly conversation; Hailey could use one of those. I'd just...stay away from the touchy subject matters." Lily nodded understandingly.

"Hey, Dad?"

"Hm?" Hayden looked down at Keenan. "What's up, kiddo?" Keenan held up the newspaper under his arm and showed Hayden the photograph on the front page; Hayden was confused.

"Does this look strange to you?" Keenan asked, pointing to a particular section of the photograph. Hayden took a closer look at what his son was pointing at and studied it carefully; he eventually noticed that something about it was, in fact, strange. He gently took the newspaper from Keenan's hands for a more thorough examination.

"What do you think, Hayden?"

"You've seen this?" Hayden asked. Lily nodded.

"Yes; Keenan showed me in the library."

"What do you think it is?" Keenan asked.

"In my opinion? It looks like some kind of light...other than that, I haven't the foggiest..."

Peggy watched anxiously as Daphne sat on her bed with Daniel as she checked his injuries; most of them were mere bruises, but the bruise around his left eye was by far the worst of his wounds. Daphne took out an unopened cola can from her nearby shoulder bag and gave it to Daniel to hold over his eye; Daniel winced as the cold aluminium can made contact with his tender bruise. The atmosphere around Peggy and the twins was incredibly tense; Daphne was stil shaken up about Daniel's beating and Daniel himself seemed to be more annoyed with it than anything else. Peggy, on the other hand, was not only even more stirred up about the beating than Daphne, but she was still stressed about the disturbing words she heard from Adelina and still had no idea what to do with this unwanted knowledge, implying it to be true, at least.

"...Daniel...please, say something," Daphne said quietly.

"What's to say? It seems the bullseye over our heads is still as prominent as ever," Daniel said grumpily.

"Bullseye?" Peggy was confused.

"Daniel-"

"I just mean Daphne and I are used to being bullied, that's all," Daniel explained to Peggy. Peggy felt even worse.

"But...that's..."

"Peggy, don't worry; it's got nothing to do with you," Daniel said reassuringly.

"But...if I hadn't-"

"Pegs, it's not your fault," Daphne said comfortingly, giving her little sister a nervous smile. "Rumours spread like the common cold on a sugar high in school, and they become more distorted the more they're spread. Really, it's nothing you said; honest!" Peggy looked away from her twin siblings.

"Peggy?" Rather than answering Daniel directly, Peggy stood up from his bed.

"Excuse me," she said politely as she hastily left the bedroom. Daphne and Daniel faced one another with perplexity.

"This is ridiculous!" Peggy suddenly heard her mother's frustration as she was about to enter her bedroom; curious as to what her mother was complaining about, she approached the top of the stairs and stood there, listening in on Hailey's conversation with Colin in secrecy.

"The twins have been bullied since they STARTED attending the academy and they STILL haven't done anything about it!" Hailey vented in frustration. She and Colin stood in the kitchen, each with a hot mug of tea nearby, as they conversed.

"Even so, it doesn't change the fact that Daniel got into a fight and was suspended for it," Colin argued reasonably. "Arceus only knows why the academy sent the girls home as well, but-"

"That's not the point!" Hailey snapped.

"I was about to say that," Colin sighed as he took a sip from his mug.

"I just can't believe the academy isn't doing anything about it – still!"

"Hailey, there are only so many times you can badger the principal to pull his head out of the sand; each attempt will fall on deaf ears anyway."

"So, what do you propose we do, Colin?!" Hailey asked violently. "Buy coloured contacts for the twins so they can be FORCED to fit in?!"

"We'll deal with what we need to deal with and leave the bullying matter to the academy's administration," Colin said calmly.

"The administration?! I'd rather leave the housekeeping to a Garbodor; I can't trust them anymore!" Hailey fumed.

"We don't even know what the problem is! Why don't you take half an hour to yourself before we talk to the twins about it?" Colin proposed. "Or I could talk to Daniel on my own? You have enough on your plate as it is with Adelina." Hailey glared sinisterly at her husband.

"I would think that my babies take priority over THAT succubus!" she said spitefully.

"Must you call her that?" Colin sighed. "Look, all I'm saying is that you can leave the twins' bullying problems to me while you deal with the Adelina issue; it's a division of responsibility, nothing more."

"I appreciate what you're trying to do, but-"

"Do you? Because it seems to me like you're trying to shut me down at every turn!" Now Colin was the one starting to become infuriated, but with his wife's refusal to listen to reason.

Peggy moved away from the staircase and quietly made her way inside her pink bedroom; she was far too intimidated to speak to her parents. She closed the door behind her and hyperventilated as she tried to calm herself down.

"I am NOT trying to shut you down at every turn!" Hailey argued.

"I beg to differ; you want to deal with the twins while juggling Adelina's questionable behaviour towards you!" Colin shouted. "I'm trying to ease your burden, not steal it away from you!"

"I don't need you fighting my battles for me!"

"I'm NOT! That's why I said I'D handle the twins!"

Peggy shivered as she heard her parents arguing violently for the second or third time in the same week.

"Your Dad really knows how to set up a department store," Keith complimented as he left the department store with Alexa by his side; Robbie soon followed with Reese, Ava and Jollie on his back and Ryder walking next to him. Between them, Keith and Alexa carried numerous shopping bags, two of which actually contain the clothes they wore before entering the store; Alexa's new clothes consisted of a green loose-fitting T-shirt over a grey crop top, blue denim shorts and her zipped knee-high boots.

"Why do you think they're all highly successful?" Alexa laughed.

"It's just inspiring to see, that's all; I find it hard to believe this one used to be an office building," Keith smiled as he looked up at the whole building again.

"So did the Lilycove Department Store."

"Really?" Keith looked back at Alexa as she nodded.

"I think the Goldenrod store used to be something as well..."

"A stock broker's office," Hayden answered. To Keith and Alexa's surprise, Hayden was approaching them with Lily, Keenan and Iara, but the duo was still happy to see them, and Hayden was happy to see them smiling. "Looking good there, Lexie."

"Thanks; Keith helped out." Keith laughed nervously.

"Yeah, well...I thought grey looked better with the green than brown..."

"Agreed," Hayden grinned. Keith suddenly felt slightly awkward; last time he was around him, Hayden wasn't exactly on good terms with him, having crashed into Alexa and hospitalised her without meaning to. Seeing Hayden smiling at him made him uneasy, but felt even more tense when Hayden actually faced him directly. "Before I forget, mind if we have a quick talk?" Keith gulped.

"Um, okay...?" Alexa was puzzled; she hadn't seen Keith so jumpy in...well, ever.

"He's not going to bite your head off, Keith, it's okay," she said calmly. Keith took a deep breath and nodded.

"Yeah, okay." Hayden was also puzzled, but led Lily and Keith to a quieter part of the street, where their conversation began in privacy. Alexa watched the chat from afar as Keenan approached her.

"Who'd have thought Keith was a nervous wreck?" Ryder chuckled.

"I think there's an underlying reason for that...I just can't put my finger on it..."

"Oh, apart from the obvious 'he broke your heart' thing?" Ryder asked sarcastically.

"Besides that," Alexa said plainly. Ryder blinked in bewilderment; he was being sarcastic! Alexa smiled at Keenan, but the smile died in a heartbeat when she noticed a look of concern in his eyes, and it wasn't even about her 'problems' with Keith! "What's up?"

"Have you seen this?" Keenan asked as he handed the newspaper to Alexa. Merely reading the title of the main news item on the paper was enough for her to lightly shove the paper back in Keenan's directon.

"Keenan, I'm trying not to get involved in that."

"I know, but I need your opinion on something, seeing as you have a keener eye for detail than I do."

"Hm?"

"This," Keenan folded the newspaper so that it only showed the photograph he seemed to be fixated on and pointed to the same area he was fascinated with. Alexa crouched as she looked at the problematic area in question and examined it closely; she could see the issue instantly. "Dad thinks it's a light of some kind; what do you think it is?"

"I think the same," Alexa answered as she looked at the rest of the photograph; the photo itself showed the precise moment when Eric's Petal Dance/Hidden Power combo backfired. Alexa's eyes widened in shock as she discovered something else wrong with the photo.

"What is it?" Keenan asked.

"Look at this; around Eric's leaves," Alexa said simply. Keenan moved next to her and looked around at Eric's circle of artificially burning leaves. He soon realised what Alexa was talking about.

"It's that light again!" Alexa stood up and looked far from impressed.

"Suddenly intensified, my coccyx; this reeks of sabotage," she said nastily. Keenan nodded in complete agreement.

"I'm going to share this with Peggy and the twins; Mum and I were going to go down to visit them in light of—uh..."

"Of what?" Alexa asked.

"Um...they had an issue at the academy and they've been sent home..."

"Bully problems?"

"Yeah." Alexa sighed.

"I think you should tell them anyway," she said affirmatively. Keenan nodded in agreement as Hayden, Lily and Keith rejoined him and Alexa.

"Ready to go, Keenan?" Keenan smiled at his mother.

"Yep!" With the confirming nod, Lily released Cheryl from her Poké Ball; Lily quickly bid Hayden, Keith and Alexa adieu before she, Keenan and Iara disappeared in a quick flash. Alexa looked up at her father in puzzlement when she felt his hand on her shoulder.

"Can we talk?"

"Of course," Alexa smiled as she followed Hayden to a different part of the street, not too far from Keith or the Pokémon, who were all watching in confusion. "What's up?"

"Are you okay?" Hayden asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine...I'm...I'm starting to enjoy myself with him." Hayden smiled.

"Good. I just wanted you to know that I have a meeting tomorrow, but I WILL be on hand if you need me for anything. Okay?" Alexa chuckled as she smiled; she found Hayden's mixed up priorities – family above business – to be both amusing and endearing.

"Okay. Thanks, Dad." Hayden cuddled Alexa and pecked a quick kiss on her cheek, which was swiftly returned by Alexa as the embrace released itself.

"Of course. With any luck, my department stores will be selling Xtransceivers," Hayden winked. "I'm going back to the hotel room to make my preparations; I'll see you there, Alexa."

"Bye, Dad," Alexa said happily as Hayden began making his way back to Castelite. Keith approached her in confusion.

"Is everything okay?"

"Yeah; he was just telling me about a business meeting tomorrow, that's all. It's about the prospect of opening XCommunications branches in his department stores." Keith smirked.

"Like he needs to improve them? His empire's already as powerful as it can get!"

"To tell you the truth, one of the businesses he has in his stores is closing down soon, so Dad's looking to find a suitable replacement beforehand."

"Huh. So...what's on the agenda for the rest of the day?" Alexa smiled at Keith.

"We can visit Castelia Park." Ryder spotted a Beautifly flying away from the rooftop of the city's gym in front of him; he recognised it as the same Beautifly he spotted over Route 4! He began to carry his suspicions.

Troy was in the field of his Daycare Centre, carrying a large and fairly deep basket of different coloured Poffins that he was distributing between the plentiful Pokémon scattered around the field. Brent and Lukie helped Troy with his task of feeding the Daycare Pokémon; Brent handed the food to the Pokémon in the nearby trees and shrubbery while Lukie's goofy grin allowed him to feed the infant Pokémon with ease. Michael walked over to Troy and smiled up at him; the Breeder spotted his Ninetails companion and chuckled.

"Hey, Mike."

"Nine. Ninetails?"

"Things aren't going so good," Troy sighed as he crouched down to feed the two Skiddo lying near the pond. "Aunt Hailey's got more problems on her plate with the twins having been sent home for some reason..."

"Nine?"

"All I know is Daniel got beaten to a pulp and his sisters are shaken up by it. That's probably why they were sent home, too." Troy cheered up when he saw the Skiddo eating his Poffins. "As for why Daniel got beat up...Hell if I know," Troy sighed as he stood up. "The girls looked shaken up when I saw them, so it was probably something other than the whole 'eye' issue the twins have been bullied with since day one."

"Ninetails."

"I dunno; they have other problems plaguing the household, and her name's-"

"LIII!" All of a sudden, a large pink Jellicent leapt from the pond, startling the Skiddo twins and the other Pokémon resting nearby, and landed in front of Troy. Troy yelped and staggered back as he began to panic; Troy's cry caught Brent and Lukie's attention, but Perri also rushed to Troy's aid, assisting Michael and Brent in fighting off the outsider Pokémon.

"JELIIII!" The Jellicent suddenly spat out a pillar of torrential water from her mouth and aimed it at the numerous Daycare Pokémon around her. However, each and every targeted Pokémon avoided the onslaught in an instant. Troy stared fearfully at the Jellicent, but panicked even more when she met his gaze with her own.

"...n-no...stay away...! ...stay away...!"

"LIII!"

"ZOOOR!"

"LIII!" Jellicent cried out in anguish as Perri darted towards her and slashed her with her blood red claws oozing in a bright violet glow. As Jellicent recovered from the attack, Perri stood in front of Troy protectively as Michael and Brent both absorbed sunlight through their tails.

"SIIIIIIII!"

"NIIIIIIINE!"

Both Michael and Brent fired a beam of concentrated solar energy from their gaping mouths, both of which struck the oncoming Jellicent as she tried to attack Perri with her tentacles held out on either side of her.

"Simisage!" Brent yelled to the panicky Troy. Troy looked up at the one-armed Simisage in terror. "Si, Simi!" With the encouraging tugs from Lukie, Troy scrambled onto his feet and moved away from the battle, as Brent had instructed. With the hyperventilating Troy at a safe distance, Perri moved in for one last Night Slash attack, her claws regaining their violet glow.

"Jelli!" Jellicent screamed as she leapt away from Perri's attack, hopped over the fence and dove straight into the lake at the bottom of the hill Troy's Daycare Centre was built on. The other Daycare Pokémon nervously emerged from their hiding places and timidly tried to resume their interrupted activities. Michael, Perri and Brent ran towards the frightened Troy and tensely watched as he tried to recover from his overwhelming shock.

"Zor? Zorroark, zorror?"

"...I-I..."

"Nine, Ninetails."

"Simi," Brent nodded as he began to escort Troy inside the cottage, Lukie, Perri and Michael following him out of concern.

Jellicent returned to the surface and floated in the calm body of water until Adelina approached her; she smiled as Adelina crouched to her level.

"Jelli!"

"Did you hear anything, Dolores, sweetie?"

"Jell!" Dolores nodded. "Jellicent, Jell, Jell, Jell-li-cent!"

"Ooooh! I can really work with that!" Adelina said with a hint of seduction in her voice. "But, oh...you did hold yourself back like I asked you to, didn't you?"

"Jell," Dolores nodded courteously.

"Very good; I don't want to spoil the fun."

"BEAUUUU!"

"Hm?" Adelina and Dolores watched as Beautifly flew towards them in a huge panic.

"Beautifly, Beau-Beau-Beautifly!" Adelina was both horrified and enraged.

"What!? Urgh, that little...!" Beautifly flew down and roosted on top of Dolores' head, but the Jellicent didn't seem to mind the butterfly resting on her crown.

"Jell?" The two Pokémon grew confused when they saw a devilish smirk reaching Adelina's lips.

"She's almost figured us out, my babies..." Adelina looked at her Pokémon; the glint of complete hatred in her eyes combined with the demonic smile intimidated Beautifly, but Dolores developed the same look. "I think it's time we pay her a visit."

 _To be continued..._


	28. Chapter 28

**Chapter Twenty Eight – The Calm Before The Storm**

Alexa lay on her bed with the hotel room phone pressed against her ear. She lay with her head against her pillow, fiddling with the Floette ornament Keith purchased for her as she conversed on the phone.

"I'm sorry about all this, Keith...I didn't realise we'd end up meeting in Unova."

"Nah, that's okay," Keith said happily, his voice being heard faintly over the phone. "I didn't realise we'd meet in Unova either."

"Were you glad we did?"

"If the circumstances were better, yeah," Keith said sheepishly. "So, uh...what are you doing today?" Keenan couldn't help but smile as Alexa spoke to Keith on the phone, but he kept one eye on his study materials, ready to hasten to it in case Alexa looked in his direction.

"I'm planning to visit the Celestial Tower."

"The what?"

"It's basically Unova's Lavender Tower; it's a short walk away from Mistralton City. Anyway, Celestial Tower has a bell on the top floor and I want to ring it for Lydia. I've always wanted to ring that bell, too, I think it's a nice idea."

"Oh."

"You sound disappointed."

"I kind of am; I was hoping we could meet up again today, that's all." Alexa chuckled.

"Third day in a row? Ease up a bit, will ya? Dad said we're not going anywhere outside of Unova until Aunt Hailey's problems are sorted out, so we've got plenty of time!"

"Yeah, I guess," Keith laughed nervously. "It's just...I've really missed you during our...time apart before the..."

"It's okay, I understand. But it's okay, we can meet up tomorrow; I just need a little bit of time to myself is all, just to rest a little bit."

"Nah, that's cool, I respect that," Keith said kindly. "Where do you want us to meet up?"

"How about Humilau City?"

"Where's that?"

"Do you know Undella Town?"

"Yep?"

"Take the Marine Tube and you end up in Humilau."

"Ah, nice! So...anything new before I go?"

"Dad's got his business meeting with the CEO of XCommunications, the Xtransceiver store, today," Alexa replied. "He's hoping to gain an outlet for each of his department stores to replace some of his closing down businesses."

"Ah, cool! Hope he gets them!"

"Me, too. Y'know, you should consider getting one."

"I'll take a raincheck on it. Anyway, I should go; I want to take Ava to see Troy."

"He'll love her," Alexa smiled. "Anyhow, I should go, too; that bell won't ring by itself."

"Unless a hurricane's about," Keith teased.

"Shut up... See you tomorrow!"

"See ya, babe!" Alexa hung up the phone and placed the ornament on the bedside table situated between her bed and Keenan's as she stood up. With her conversation over, Keenan looked up at Alexa directly.

"Dad's already gone to his meeting, by the way."

"What? But it's still early yet."

"I know, but Dad wants to get there early."

"Where IS his meeting anyway?"

"I don't know, he didn't say."

"I'll catch him later and let him know about my plans for tomorrow."

"So you're really into getting back together with him?" Keenan asked with interest. Alexa smiled as she picked up her belt bag and clipped it around her waist, keeping her hair out of the way.

"So far, yes. Anyway, I'll see you later on," Alexa smiled as she approached Keenan; the two siblings exchanged quick pecks on the cheek before Alexa made her way out of the room.

"Bye!"

Hayden and Tidus walked side by side as they approached a coffee house built near the runway's wire fencing. The coffee house appeared to be insanely quiet on the outside, but the patrons were all indoors. Standing near the corner of the coffee house was a slightly taller gentleman in a smart grey suit with balding black hair, rimless glasses over his face and a slightly pudgy waistline; he looked as though he was waiting for something. The man smiled as he saw Hayden approaching him with his Typhlosion.

"Sorry to have kept you, Mr Gulliver; have you been waiting for long?"

"Not at all, my plane landed a mere ten minutes ago," Gulliver said politely. "I'm surprised that you didn't fly here yourself."

"That was the plan, but my Farfetch'd sprained his wing." Gulliver chuckled, which confused Hayden and Tidus.

"Good one." Except Hayden wasn't joking. "Anyway, shall we?"

"Lead on," Hayden insisted, allowing Gulliver to enter the coffee house first. Hayden and Tidus soon followed.

Troy and Harvey crouched in front of a fairly Purugly with more of an overbite than usual lying on the grass of Troy's Daycare field. Laddy and Lukie were near the fence, watching the two Breeders inspecting the Tiger Cat Pokémon while occasionally looking at the pathway near the Daycare Centre, curious to see who was passing by. Harvey wore a stethoscope over his ears and held its diaphragm over the Purugly's stomach area.

"What do you think, Dad?"

"Are you genuinely asking me or are you after a second opinion?"

"Second opinion," Troy grinned.

"You don't need one, sport; from the sounds of it, they're both just fine," Harvey smiled as he pulled the stethoscope out of his ears. "That being said, laying time is nigh; I'd say within the next week."

"Same."

"Then why ask me for a second opinion?" Harvey laughed as he helped the Purugly onto her feet.

"Better to be safe than sorry." Harvey grew worried.

"Troy, this isn't the first pregnancy you've dealt with...c'mon, what's eating you? You can tell me."

"A-About that, I-"

"AIPOM!" Laddy said excitedly as he used his tail to wave at Daniel, Daphne and Peggy as they passed the Daycare Centre. Daniel and his sisters approached the scruffy Aipom just as Harvey and Troy walked over to their Pokémon. Troy was the first to notice that only Daniel was out of uniform, but Harvey spotted the large plaster over his eye. A fully healed Piper roosted happily on Peggy's head while Daniel's Umbreon and Daphne's Espeon walked alongside her.

"Hey, guys. You feeling any better?" Harvey asked nicely.

"There have been worse days, but, all things considered, I feel a little better," Daniel said lifelessly.

"That's...that's good to hear," Troy smiled feebly. Daphne noticed Troy's nervousness immediately.

"What's wrong, Troy? You look shaken up."

"Y-Yeah, I...I was about to explain that to my Dad..." Troy sighed shakily, worrying Lukie even further. "There was a...a...J-Jellicent..."

"What, in the Daycare?" Harvey asked in astonishment. Troy merely nodded in silence.

"You don't accept Jellicent in your Daycare, though, do you?" Daniel asked quizzically.

"I-I do, but...I just...don't deal with them; Brent does," Troy explained. "I-I mean...it'd be unfair if I-I didn't... T-The thing is, though...n-nobody dropped off a J-Je-Jellicent r-recently..." Daniel immediately grew suspicious.

"M-Maybe it was wild?" Peggy presumed.

"I strongly doubt that, pet; the nearest natural habitat for Jellicent is Route 17," Harvey said carefully. Armed with this new information, Daniel discreetly wandered away from his sisters, uncle and eldest cousin as he instigated a call through his Xtransceiver, his Umbreon watching his every movement.

Phoenix flew towards a tall stone tower with Alexa riding on his back, slowing down as he approached the large bell at the top of the tower. He landed gently and crouched slightly to let Alexa dismount easily. Once on her feet, Alexa released Ryder, Jollie, Xavier, Chutney and a brown-eyed Wigglytuff from their Poké Balls. Ryder stretched his arms.

"Nice bell."

"Please be serious, Ryder, we're at the top of Celestial Tower," Alexa said quietly.

"Ah, my Mom told me about this place," Xavier commented, looking at his surroundings. "She said this is the final resting place for Unova's Pokémon."

"That's right," Alexa smiled. "I thought it'd be nice to ring the bell as a little tribute to Lydia."

"Wiggly!" Wigglytuff rejoiced, bouncing on the spot. "Wiggly-wiggly, Wigglytuff!" Alexa giggled.

"I knew you'd like the idea, Purukin." Alexa approached the bell and took hold of its rope with both hands. Phoenix walked over to her and grabbed the rope with both hands as well, helping her to pull it and ultimately ring the bell. As the bell rang, Ryder, Xavier, Chutney, Jollie and Purukin lowered their heads in prayer. Alexa and Phoenix walked away from the bell a little bit as they, too, lowered their heads in prayer. Everyone remained silent until the bell ceased its sombre ringing.

"Rhrrrgh."

"Thanks, Phoenix. I just wanted to do something a little different to honour Lydia." Alexa lost the gentle smile she once had. "And Medicham...Salamence...Scrafty...Roserade...Lapras, Stantler...Robbie's Dad... ...Gabby..." The Pokémon became concerned when Alexa buried her eyes in her hand and sighed. "Every time one criminal gets sent down, another one takes their place... Kincaid, Cain, Jordan-"

"Bun?" Alexa chuckled nervously as she looked back at her concerned team.

"Sorry...got a bit carried away there."

"Happens to the best of us, hun," Xavier said nicely.

"Sounds to me, though, like you're not exactly happy being one of the two prides of the Ranger Union," Ryder suspected as he lifted his surrogate sister into his arms.

"Chippa?" Alexa frowned again.

"Yeah, I...guess it is true... ...I need to think about it more; I don't know how much leave I've got left." Phoenix smiled warmly as he placed his clawed hands on her shoulder; she looked up at her loyal Charizard in confusion.

"Rhhhrgh, rrrrgh..." Alexa smiled sweetly.

"Thanks, Phoenix. Anyway...let's change the subject and head to Mistralton; it'll be time for elevenses by the time we get there on foot, I reckon."

"You never used to have elevenses," Xavier teased as Alexa returned Purukin and Chutney to their Poké Balls.

"That's not strictly true; it's more accurate to say I don't usually have elevenses."

"All right, fair enough," Xavier grinned as he walked towards the edge of the tower. Phoenix lifted Alexa off of her feet and held her in his arms as he gently flew off of the tower and down onto the grass at the bottom of the tall building, Ryder cheekily hopping onto his mentor's back during his descent. Xavier leapt off of the tower as a wave of magenta energy shifted his form from a Zoroark to a happily gliding Emolga; Xavier glided slowly towards the ground and returned to his normal Zoroark self when his feet touched the ground. "Ta-da!"

"Buneary!" Jollie applauded.

"I wonder if every other Zoroark's more humble about their illusion abilities," Alexa wondered jokingly as Phoenix set her down onto the ground. Xavier rushed towards her, his magenta wave shifting his form to Keith's. Xavier lifted Alexa off of the ground and spun her around, much to her alarm.

"Yeah, well, not every Zoroark has had the advantages I've had," he smirked; Xavier's voice sounded so much like Keith's that one would never have guessed that the Keith spinning Alexa around and hugging her was, in reality, a Pokémon! "I have no intention of keeping my abilities to myself...Kitten..."

"Hey, only Keith can call me that...Xavier..." Xavier laughed as he returned to his usual form once more.

"Only pulling your leg, hun," he winked. "C'mon; last one to Mistralton's a mouldy Lucky Egg!"

"Bun!" Jollie leapt out of Ryder's arms and chased the playful Zoroark down the path. Phoenix hurried along after the pair, but not because he wanted to participate in Xavier's challenge. Alexa and Ryder laughed as they watched the Charizard trying to calm the hyperactive fox and rabbit Pokémon down; they found it relatively amusing that, in fact, Xavier and Jollie were more interested in chasing each other than determining who the mouldy Lucky Egg was.

"How were the kids this morning?" Lily asked. She was communing with Hailey through her Xtransceiver whilst sitting on the sofa of her hotel room in Castelite, with a steaming hot mug of tea sitting on the coffee table in front of her. Hailey sighed as she sat down on her kitchen chair.

"Well, the girls are still shaken up about yesterday, but Daniel seems to be recovering pretty well..."

"Is he due to see the principal about his suspension?" Lily enquired.

"Not that we're aware; he's just to serve the suspension and return to school next week as normal," Hailey replied. "In the meantime, he's volunteered to take his sisters to school in our stead."

"They usually take the Unfezant to school, don't they?"

"If the weather's nice or if they're terribly late, yes," Hailey nodded. "But I am worried, Lily...you know how kids at school hear things about what other students are going through-"

"No, I can't say that I do, Hailey."

"Oh! R-Right, sorry," Hailey laughed sheepishly. "But, yeah, kids have a way of hearing things they shouldn't know about...I'm starting to wonder if Daniel's fight was instigated because of my disputes with Colin..."

"Considering he and the girls aren't the only Striaton Academy students living in Nacrene, that wouldn't be too surprising."

"Exactly. I dunno, though...all of this is getting a bit much...I mean, first Adelina starts stabbing me in the back like some kind of pin cushion and now Daniel's getting into fights...Colin and I aren't exactly getting any better either..."

"No?"

"Well...Colin said he'd handle the twins while I deal with Adelina..." Lily grew worried.

"And you say that like it's a bad thing?"

"I don't even know, Lily, I'm losing my mind here..."

"My advice? Let Colin take care of the kids while you get your head around everything regarding Adelina," Lily smiled. "You're piling too much onto yourself and it's stressing you out."

"What's going on?" Keenan asked. He remained lying on his hotel bed with his studying materials and textbooks in front of him, but held his arm in front of him as he spoke to Daniel through his Xtransceiver. Iara hung from Keenan's shoulder to join in the conversation.

"I've just heard some...interesting information. It's Troy."

"Is he all right?"

"Far from it; he had an unwelcome visitor yesterday – a Jellicent." Keenan halted his handwriting as he stared at his cousin in shock.

"What was a Jellicent doing at Troy's Daycare?"

"I don't know, but I do know this; it wasn't a Jellicent that Troy had taken in – it was one that just randomly attacked him for no reason as far as we can establish."

"But why are you relaying this information to me?" Keenan asked. "I'm trying to study."

"I understand that and I apologise for the interruption, but, seeing as you're also following the sabotaged Contest speculation, I thought I'd fill you in." Keenan raised an eyebrow.

"You think that relates to Troy's ambush?"

"What Pokémon did Vergil and Uncle Harvey fight when they battled Adelina?"

"I don't know. What does that have to do with anything?"

"I'm not sure...but I somehow get the feeling that we-know-who's involved..."

"Adelina? That's a shot in the dark, isn't it? I mean, she'd have to have known about Troy's incident and have a Jellicent of her own; what are the odds of her using her Jellicent – if indeed she has one – to attack Troy's Daycare Centre without knowing of his fear for the species? More to the point, WHY would Adelina arrange that assault in the first place?" Keenan's hypothetical questions gave Daniel more food for thought.

"Yes...I see your point... I'll keep my nose to the ground and get back to you if any new information surfaces."

"I'd appreciate it. Hey, Daniel?"

"Yes?"

"What should we do if...?"

"If Troy's assault was down to Adelina? ...I haven't thought that far ahead. Nonetheless, I still consider her a suspect and I'll try and tell my parents about it."

"I'll do the same once my Dad's back from his meeting," Keenan nodded.

Alexa and Ryder walked slowly down the rural pathway towards Mistralton City. Xavier and Jollie were further ahead, randomly skipping merrily while Phoenix walked alongside them slowly, keeping an eye on the playful pair.

"I saw how you and Keith got on yesterday," Ryder began. Alexa turned her attention to her smiling Lucario. "I'm happy for you."

"Slow down, Ryder, we're just rebuilding out foundation of trust right now," Alexa chuckled.

"You already trusted him with our Team Galactic story, what else do you need?" Ryder asked innocently. Alexa was surprised; she'd forgotten about how she confided in Keith about her deepest of emotional scars.

"...I...hadn't thought of that..." Ryder was bemused when Alexa sighed heavily and shakily. "I trusted him enough to tell him above my own parents...what does that say about someone from a close-knit family?"

"To be fair, though, it IS difficult to tell your parents about how you were kidnapped by a guy with a team bent on universal recreation."

"Thanks for the reminder," Alexa said grumpily.

"Sorry...but my point is...that telling Keith about it is proof of how much you trusted him," Ryder said kindly. Alexa smiled wishfully as she recalled the gentle embrace Keith gave to her after she regaled him of her grim tale of unwanted heroism; she remembered his soft touch even more than the sadness she felt as she told him her story and felt warm inside.

"You're right." Alexa stopped Ryder and gently pulled him into a loving hug; Ryder wagged his tail as he wrapped his arms around her. "Thanks, Ryder."

"Pleasure; I just wanted to-" Ryder suddenly spotted something that made him snarl angrily. "GET OUTTA HERE, STALKER-BUG!" he roared. Alexa instantly released her embrace and looked at the frightened Beautifly Ryder was so angry at; she watched as the Beautifly flew towards one of the trees behind Alexa and Ryder. Xavier, Jollie and Phoenix hurried over to Alexa following Ryder's outcry.

"Yo, Ryder, what's all the commotion?"

"THAT!" Ryder pointed to the fleeing Beautifly as it hid behind the tree. Alexa and the Pokémon were surprised when the Beautifly came out of hiding...as it hung from Adelina's forearm. Adelina's sleeveless dress was slate grey with an odd black upside down crescent insignia underneath an oval opening that exposed her well-rounded cleavage, and her open-toed heeled shoes looked highly inappropriate for every terrain other than a dance floor.

"Hello, dear."

"Adelina?! What're you doing here?!" Alexa asked in horror. Ryder and Phoenix subtly stepped in front of her protectively as Adelina recalled her Beautifly back into its Poké Ball.

"Why, I'm here to see you, sweetheart."

"I take it your Beautifly is how you knew I'd be here?"

"Silvia has been keeping an eye on things, yes," Adelina said as she stroked her faithful Delcatty's head. Alexa raised an eyebrow.

"Things?"

"This is the third time I saw that stupid Beautifly, Alex!" Ryder snarled viciously. "Once on Route 4, once in Castelia and now here!" Adelina chuckled.

"I didn't realise Silvia blew her cover...I'll need to have a word with her about that..."

"You're bilingual, too?" Alexa asked in genuine shock.

"Dear Daddy's Furfrou kept me company, yes, but that's another story entirely."

"What do you want?" Alexa asked suspiciously. "If you're looking to battle me, I'm not interested."

"Oh? But I saw your battle with those darling twins of Hailey's; your little Buneary was just spectacular!"

"You can stop the false compliments, Adelina, I can see right through them," Alexa said nastily. "Much like I can see through whatever lies you have in store for Aunt Hailey!"

"Lies?" Adelina smirked and giggled when she saw how stern Alexa looked. "I don't recall telling any lies."

"You just told another one," Alexa growled.

"Alex, c'mon, we're wasting our time here," Xavier said quietly.

"Yeah, you're right," Alexa sighed. "She's not even our problem anyway."

"Oh? Are you sure about that?" Alexa looked at Adelina in confusion.

"What do you mean by that?" she asked cautiously. Adelina smirked.

"I know your secret." Phoenix, Jollie and Xavier were lost, but Alexa felt her heart beating heavily as her stomach plummeted, overwhelmed with intense fear and horror; there was only one secret Adelina was potentially referring to...

 _To be continued..._


	29. Chapter 29

**Chapter Twenty Nine – Xavier**

"Wait, what secret?" Xavier asked in bewilderment. "What's going on?" Phoenix looked back at Alexa and noticed the look of fear in her eyes; he then glared furiously at Adelina for having upset his Trainer. Adelina, however, smirked smugly.

"Well...it would be such a shame if Mummy and Daddy knew their eldest daughter crossed paths with-...what were they called again? Oh, yes; Team Galactic." Xavier and Jollie were even more lost than before, but Phoenix, now understanding Alexa's fear, growled deeply out of rage. Ryder, however, scoffed.

"And?"

"Pardon me?" Adelina inquired.

"So you know a secret; big whoop. It won't do you any good, though, will it? I mean, from what I heard, you're not the most trustworthy of humans in the eyes of the family; even if you told them what limited knowledge you have of this so-called secret, who would take you seriously?" Adelina chuckled, much to Ryder's chagrin.

"Please...I'm fully aware that my credibility among Hailey's family – both of them – leaves a lot to be desired, but, considering that they're a close-knit family, as Alexa described it, I wouldn't be surprised if they decided to pursue the allegation anyway, even if it came from someone like me." Alexa froze completely; as if her family knowing of her darkest hour was bad enough on its own, but she knew all too well that there was at least one family member besides herself who would be able to see the truth if Adelina let her 'secret' slip – Keenan.

"Someone wanna fill me in on where this broad's going with all of this?" Xavier said in confusion.

"It's quite simple, darling; I can't imagine that, judging by the look on her face, your dear Alexa would want her parents to know that she was kidnapped by these Team Galactic people – whoever they are – so-"

"Wait, what?!" Xavier and Jollie looked at Alexa in dismay. "Is that true, Alex?" Alexa lowered her head in shame and held onto herself for the sense of security she failed to acquire.

"...y-yes..."

"Bun...!"

"Alex..."

"As I was saying," Adelina groaned. "If she doesn't want this news to escape my lips, she'd do well to keep her precious little nose out of my affairs."

"NO!" Alexa shrieked suddenly. "I've been TRYING to stay out of your shenanigans this whole time!"

"Oh? But Silvia saw and heard your discussing it with little Keenan."

"He asked for my opinion, that's it! Opinion isn't the same thing as fact!"

"But-"

"That's another thing!" Alexa continued in protest. "If you had just left me alone and not confront me like you are at the moment, my opinion would have stayed exactly that; by confronting me, you're practically admitting that you have something you want to hide – something relating to the speculation your Beautifly overheard, if I'm not mistaken!" Adelina recoiled, but Ryder smirked at Alexa.

"You tell 'er, girl!"

"You seem to be forgetting that-"

"Stop it! I'm tired of crossing villains who end up making things so unnecessarily personal; I've already had that at least twice and it stops HERE! Just...leave me alone!" Alexa quickly turned and began to walk towards the very distant Mistralton City, her Pokémon following closely. Adelina scowled as she subtly opened a Poké Ball in her hand.

"Don't you walk away from ME," she said spitefully as her Jellicent lunged from her Poké Ball and towards Alexa. Phoenix was the first Pokémon to spot the attacking Jellicent and quickly slashed her back with claws enveloped in a dark shadow. Alexa, Ryder, Xavier and Jollie looked back at Dolores in shock as she bounced along the floor, but were even more alarmed when Dolores hopped back up again with barely a dent on her.

"No way! How did she take that so well?!" Adelina laughed.

"When I want something, I get it; I wanted my Pokémon to be powerful, so-"

"You used the Super Training regimens, didn't you?" Alexa asked cautiously.

"Indeed I did," Adelina said smugly, taking another Poké Ball in hand. The Poké Ball looked darker in colouration. "But I only used the appropriate ones for each Pokémon."

"Huh?"

"She means that she only took each Pokémon through the regimens that best suited their general battling abilities," Alexa explained to Ryder. She took a look at Dolores and noticed how virtually unscathed she looked despite receiving a swift and powerful attack from her strongest Pokémon. "In her case, her ability to endure physical attacks has increased tenfold because of one of the regimens she repeatedly went through..."

"Precisely."

"C'mon, Alex, let's just get outta here," Ryder complained. Alexa spotted the second Poké Ball in Adelina's hand and scowled.

"I...w-we can't..."

"Why not?" Xavier asked.

"She won't let us."

"Indeed I won't," Adelina smirked. "But I do understand that you're in a bit of a hurry, so I'll cut to the chase." Adelina tossed her Poké Ball into the air. "Carter, honey; time to shine, my pet!"

The encapsulated Poké Ball opened and released a thick black smokescreen that veiled the entirety of Adelina's side of the battle field. Once the smoke finally waned, the Pokémon that stood before Alexa gave her goosebumps on top of her goosebumps; it appeared to be a large squid-like Pokémon with yellow spots and stripes on its deep lavender torso. The Malamar carried a smirk on its beak, which intimidated Jollie.

"B-Bun...!"

"I suppose congratulations are in order, Alexa; you are the first to meet...my strongest Pokémon."

"Let's see how strong it really is!" Ryder roared as he raced towards Carter.

"Ryder, no!" Alexa cried. To the confusion of Alexa, Xavier, Jollie and Phoenix, Ryder suddenly stopped moving and stood there silently. "...Ryder?"

"Yo, Ryder...get back here, will ya?" Xavier said nervously. Adelina smirked with high amusement as Ryder suddenly turned around and leapt at Phoenix, his eyes revealed to be pale and soulless as his teeth sank into the Charizard's neck without warning.

"RHRRRRGH!"

"Phoenix! Ryder!" Alexa suddenly looked towards Adelina in confusion after hearing her chuckle.

"Carter isn't my strongest Pokémon for no reason; he's so powerful he can make other Pokémon battle for him."

"That's not strength, that's cowardice!" Xavier protested.

"Never mind that it's illegal to use a Malamar's abilities like this!" Alexa shouted violently. "Let my Lucario go!"

"Why would I arrange that, darling?"

"Nrrrgh!" Phoenix begrudgingly gripped Ryder's neck tightly, causing him to loosen his grip on the Charizard's neck, and threw him onto the ground. Ryder, however, recovered immediately and attempted to repeat his assault; Phoenix countered with a quick swat of his tail. While Phoenix was distracted with keeping Ryder away from him, Dolores released a wave of steaming hot water directly at his face. "HRRRRGH!"

"Phoenix!" Alexa glared furiously at Adelina. "Adelina, that's enough! Stop this right now and battle me fairly if you want a challenge THAT badly!"

"Oh, I don't intend to stop, darling," Adelina smirked. "I'll do whatever it takes to get what I want."

"Even if the risks include jail time?!"

"Like I said...whatever it takes."

"Stay with Alex," Xavier said to Jollie as he placed her down onto the floor. Alexa faced her Zoroark in confusion.

"Xavier?"

"Phoenix is outnumbered; it's high time I evened the score," he growled before dashing towards Carter. Carter attempted to slash his tentacle across Xavier's body, but he swerved to avoid the attack faster than the Malamar could even blink and breathed a thick pillar of flames by blowing into the tiny flame he ignited in his claws. With Carter knocked off guard, Ryder's eyes returned to their usual vibrancy as he regained his free will. He blinked in confusion.

"Eh? What just happened...?"

"Ryder! Are you okay?!" Alexa asked worriedly.

"Buneary!" Ryder looked at Alexa and Jollie in bewilderment as he scratched the back of his head.

"Y-Yeah, I guess...chest hurts a little, though..." Huey slowly moved from Adelina's side and leapt up at Ryder. Ryder, however, heard Huey coming and slammed a sphere of aura down at the back of the Delcatty's neck. "What's the big idea, you flea-riddled fuzz-bucket?! I wasn't ready!"

"Huey, honey...stay back, darling." Huey lifted himself up off of the floor and walked back to Adelina's side, hissing violently at Ryder the entire time. "Your move, Alexa."

"Xavier, get back here, Ryder, Dark Pulse, Phoenix, Flamethrower!"

"Aw, yeah!" Ryder grinned wildly as he fired a string of dark purple rings from his paws at Dolores. Phoenix was only too happy to comply with Alexa's instructions as he exhaled his signature stream of bright orange and red flames at the Malamar. While Dolores and Carter successfully evaded the oncoming attacks, Xavier shrugged as he casually returned to Alexa's side.

"Nice try; Dolores, Scald once again on the Charizard, Carter, use Flamethrower on the Lucario!" Adelina instructed. The scaling hot water and pillar of flames fired from their respective users and headed straight for their intended targets; cleverly, Phoenix countered the boiling water with a large blade of concentrated air formed in his wingspan, while Ryder negated the string of flames by forming a translucent green barrier in front of him, causing the flames to wane as they divided. Adelina grew impatient.

"Whoo, you go, guys!"

"Bun, Bun!" Alexa looked up at the sky; despite how crispy the air felt, it was a surprisingly sunny day.

"Phoenix, try a Solarbeam! Ryder, Aura Sphere!"

"Hrrgh!" Phoenix nodded as his tail began to absorb particles of sunlight.

"You got it!" Ryder smirked as he formed the sphere of aura in both paws. Adelina bit her lip as both the Solarbeam and the Aura Sphere hit their respective targets, but Alexa merely kept her eyes on the Malamar opposing her Pokémon.

"Hang on..."

"Huh? What's wrong, Alex?" Xavier wondered.

"Hey, Adelina...if Carter really is your strongest Pokémon, why were you keeping his identity in the dark?" Alexa asked. "You DID say I was the first to see him..."

"Oh, yes, I did," Adelina grinned. "Well...you saw what he did to your Lucario..."

"Hang on, what did he do to me?!" Ryder growled angrily.

"Took control over your mind and made you attack Phoenix," Xavier said bluntly.

"I what?!"

"Incidentally..." Adelina's smirk grew more sinister. "I don't have a Zebstrika."

"What?" Xavier raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"What does that have to do with-"

"It was you."

"Huh?" Xavier and Ryder faced Alexa in confusion; her eyes burned with hatred.

"You were the one who staged Piper's attack; you used Carter's hypnotic abilities to take possession of one of the wild Zebstrikas that live in the area to attack Piper!"

"Clever girl...but this is why I demand your silence."

"If you leave me alone right now, our discussion won't go any further than us!" Alexa insisted. Adelina chuckled.

"You're just afraid that I might loosen my tongue in the presence of your family members..."

"Of course I am, but that's not the point!" Alexa argued. "You have NO reason to confront me like this!"

"I told you; if you'd left me alone, you would have been able to cover yourself rather than giving yourself away to me!"

"You rotten...! All right...if you want to play it that way...I'll make things more difficult."

"Eh?" Alexa was confused. "But I'm telling the truth!"

"Mmhmm, sure, honey. Dolores? Do it."

"JELL!"

"Ryder, back up and use Dark Pulse again!" Alexa instructed.

"You got it!" Ryder nodded as he released his string of dark purple rings at the jellyfish Pokémon. To Ryder's horror, Dolores charged through the Dark Pulse and grabbed the distracted Lucario's arm with her tentacle.

"Shadow Claw!" Alexa cried. Ryder hastily raised his free arm in hopes of attacking Dolores with dark shadowy claws formed from the spike on the back of his paw, but Dolores used a different tentacle to grab his would-be attacking arm.

"Whuh?!"

"Phoenix, help him!" Alexa cried desperately.

"HRRGH!" Phoenix charged towards Dolores, only to be greeted by Carter, who slashed his tentacle across the Charizard's chest as Dolores bounced back with Ryder trapped in her tentacles. Phoenix roared in agony as Carter's tentacles sliced through his flesh, causing blood to spray onto the Malamar's demented face, much to Alexa's terror.

"Phoenix!"

"Playtime is over, darling," Adelina said nastily as Dolores knocked Ryder onto his knees; Dolores held onto both of his arms with one tentacle, clenched his throat with her other tentacle and kept his legs together with her three smaller tentacles, leaving him completely helpless.

"Let him go!" Alexa pleaded.

"BUNEARY!"

"I'm okay," Ryder insisted. "It's just...hard to breathe...I'm fine...!"

"Like hell you are!" Xavier said nastily as he stepped onto the battle field, his entire being burning with a deep black aura. "Look, lady...I don't take kindly to anyone who hurts my friends... You're trying to blackmail my girl and hold my bro hostage after making your mutant calamari possess his mind...you make me sick...!"

"Then come and get him. Huey, honey; you're back in."

"Reow," Huey grinned sinisterly as he walked back into the battle.

"Xavier, Phoenix, PLEASE be careful..."

"Our main aim is to keep HER away from YOU, hun...we'll get Ryder back and have ourselves a good ol' Unovan Triple Battle to settle things..."

"Just...be careful..."

"Focus, girl," Xavier said firmly. Jollie looked up at Alexa worriedly; it was clear that Alexa was starting to become stressed.

"R-Right... Phoenix, use Roost, Xavier, cover him..." Despite Alexa's lack of confidence in her commands, both Phoenix and Xavier complied; Phoenix knelt on the floor and wrapped his wings around him as he began to glow; the scar across his chest began to heal. Carter watched intently as Xavier sped in front of the recovering Phoenix and slammed both paws on the ground, releasing a large black and deep purple shock wave that was powerful enough to knock Carter and Huey back a couple of inches. Once Carter and Huey regained their footing, Phoenix stood up and roared, his chest scar having completely vanished from his body.

"Carter, Night Slash your Dark-type rival, Huey, give that Charizard more battle scars he can TRY and heal," Adelina said arrogantly.

"Fly and-and..." While Phoenix complied with his half-hearted instruction and flew high into the sky, Xavier looked back at Alexa with concern.

"Yo! Focus!"

"S-Sorry. U-Use Flamethrower."

"You got it, hun," Xavier grinned. As Phoenix darted towards Carter and eventually butted his head against the Malamar's torso, Xavier zoomed towards Huey and blew into his ignited claws to release the burst of flames at the perplexed Delcatty. Carter kept a sneaky eye on Xavier during his random dashes across the battle field. Huey narrowly avoided Xavier's flames and attempted to repeat his instruction on Xavier in anger, but the Zoroark dashed away from the furious feline. Carter smirked at Xavier, his eyes glistening in a silver glow that faded as quickly as it came.

"Now...Carter, Superpower..."

"MAR!" Carter's body burned in a bright blue aura. Ryder's eyes widened as he realised why Carter was delaying his attack.

"ALEX, RUN!"

Ryder's cries only served to make Carter charge towards the gravely alarmed Alexa. Before anyone could even blink, Xavier dashed towards Alexa and knocked her down. Jollie fled from the falling Alexa, but she held her arm out and ended up in some sort of one-armed handstand; however, she was in a position that allowed her to clearly see – albeit upside down – Carter unintentionally attacking Xavier with Superpower. Distraught, Alexa flipped herself onto her feet and took hold of Xavier's Poké Ball.

"Xavier, re—AAGH!" Furious, Carter swatted Alexa away with his tentacle and used the same one to grab and crush Xavier's Poké Ball, right in front of the already devastated Alexa, Jollie and Ryder. Alexa could only watch as Xavier finally crashed into one of the thickest trees on the entire route – head first.

"XAVIER!" Alexa and Ryder cried desperately. But the Zoroark didn't respond; he simply fell to the floor flat on his belly, unconscious. Adelina laughed.

"Aw, did he make you angry, baby?"

"Mala-MAR!" Carter fumed towards Adelina. Carter spotted Alexa forcing herself onto her feet, despite having ended up with a shoulder injury, and hurrying over to Xavier's aid. The Malamar raised his tentacle to strike her and the fleeting Buneary, but Phoenix flew in between him and Alexa with wings encased in hard steel; Carter's attack clashed with Phoenix's iron wing before he flapped the tentacle away from him and retaliated with a burst of brilliant blue flames. Huey attempted to assist Carter, but Adelina stopped him by gently pressing her fingers against his head.

"Xavier! XAVIER!"

"Bun-bun!" Alexa frantically searched the belt bag around her waist, but her rummaging only served to distress and horrify her further as she began to panic.

"...no...no, no, no, NO!"

"Buneary?"

"...I don't have any spare Poké Balls...! And my potions are in my rucksack...!"

"BUN?!"

"You mean you weren't even prepared for this battle?!" Adelina laughed arrogantly. "I've heard you were out of practise, but I never knew you were THIS badly out of practise!" Alexa hurriedly examined the back of Xavier's head, but, for the life of her, she couldn't get through the Zoroark's thick black mane to see if he had any external damage to his head, and a look at the tree trunk he crashed into hadn't helped her either; there was no sign of blood on the bark. "So, do I have your-" Adelina halted mid-sentence when she heard Alexa choking back a sob.

"...I surrender..." Ryder, Phoenix and Jollie were crushed to hear such words escaping from Alexa's lips; as far as they knew, she hadn't surrendered a Pokémon Battle in her entire life! Even Adelina was severely alarmed.

"Pardon?!" Alexa had to force herself not to succumb to her sobs, but her tears refused to remain in her eyes any longer as they fell down her face like raindrops dripping down a lock of hair. Ryder was especially crushed to see Alexa in such a vulnerable state, but it served to infuriate Phoenix even more than he was during Xavier's assault.

"...I...I surrender...you win...the battle's yours..."

"B-Buneary...!" Even Jollie was starting to become stressed. Ryder stared at Alexa's surrender and Xavier's limp form as his own tears began to fall from his sapphire eyes. Adelina, however, was disgusted; this was not what she wanted from Alexa.

"...I-I won't say anything to anyone about you..." Alexa turned to face Adelina; Ryder felt even worse as he had a perfect view of Alexa's fear, devastation and capitulation. "Just let us go and let me get Xavier to the Pokémon Centre!" she cried perilously. "Please! You've already won!"

"...no. That's not good enough." Alexa was terrified and horrified to hear that her please were denied in a heartbeat. "I don't doubt that you're an honest girl, Alexa, but I refuse to take any chances! Carter, finish it!"

"Malamar!" Carter smirked sinisterly as his burning blue aura returned to him; to Alexa's trepidation, the aura somehow burned even more violently than previously.

"Better move if you don't want Carter to hurt you in the process...DARLING!" Adelina cackled as Carter zoomed towards the already unconscious Xavier. However, he stopped and faced Dolores in confusion when Ryder suddenly roared loudly, his cyan aura burning wildly all over his body; Dolores screamed and hastily backed away from Ryder, unintentionally releasing him. Ryder, on all fours, raced in front of Carter and lunged at him, sinking his teeth into the base of Carter's neck.

"MAAAR!" The sight of an aura-enveloped enraged Lucario viciously pressing his jaws against Carter's neck shocked Adelina and Huey, but Carter managed to throw Ryder away from him. Ryder, however, landed on his feet – all four of them – and slowly inched closer to the startled Malamar, snarling furiously and tears escaping his aura-filled eyes. Phoenix walked over to the Lucario and growled violently, the flame on his tail burning in an intense blue flame. Seeing both of her Pokémon in such extreme states of rage only added to her anxiety.

"...Phoenix...Ryder..."

"What are you waiting for?! Go and get them!" Adelina shrieked demandingly. Huey, Carter and Dolores all charged towards the furious duo. Ryder instantly raced towards Huey and chomped the base of his neck while Phoenix became surrounded in the blue fire that burned on his tail as he punched the ground beneath him; Carter then looked around him as the earth began to shake under his legs, only to be met with intense hot flames that exploded all around him. Carter and Huey cried out in pain from their respective attacks, but Dolores suffered slight burns from getting caught in Phoenix's Blast Burn attack.

"A-Agh...!" Alexa flinched as she tried to hoist Xavier off of the floor using her wounded shoulder as a support for the comatose Zoroark. Jollie watched helplessly as Alexa struggled to lift both herself and Xavier off of the floor.

"Bun!"

"I-I'm fine...!" Alexa looked at Xavier and knew she couldn't lift him up alone, let alone help him to the Pokémon Centre on her own; she needed help. Desperate, she turned towards Ryder, who was busy engaged in a rather primitive battle of slashes and bites with Huey. "Ryder!" she called. Ryder chomped one of Huey's legs and effortlessly tossed the Delcatty away from him; Huey almost crashed into Adelina. "RYDER!"

"Huh?" Ryder's aura suddenly faded as he finally regained his senses.

"Help me with Xavier!" Alexa cried. "PLEASE!" Ryder slowly stood up properly and hurried to help Alexa; he held Xavier's right arm over his shoulders.

"G-Give his weight to me."

"Huh?"

"Give his weight to me!" Ryder exclaimed. Alexa complied as she allowed Ryder to take most of Xavier's weight as he stood up properly. Alexa looked at Phoenix as Xavier was finally lifted off of the ground.

"Phoenix, let's go!" she called. Phoenix nodded as he began to follow Alexa, Ryder and Jollie as they began to flee from the brutal battle. Adelina scoffed snobbishly.

"You do NOT walk away from me! GO GET THEM!" she screamed. Huey, Carter and Dolores pursued Alexa and her Pokémon. Phoenix breathed a stream of blue fire at the three Pokémon to halt their movements while Ryder, using his cyan psychic energy, took two Poké Balls from Alexa's belt bag.

"Purukin, Chutney, cover us!" he pleaded as he opened their Poké Balls. The two happy Pokémon were released from the Poké Balls and were even happier to help Phoenix fend off the pursuing trio, despite being completely oblivious as to why they were doing so to begin with. Adelina lost all patience with the added interference of Alexa's Pachirisu and Wigglytuff.

"Don't just stand there, get them all!" Alexa, confused, looked behind her and saw her Pachirisu giving Huey the run-around, Dolores attempting to strangle her Wigglytuff and Carter engaging in a slash-fight with her Charizard. The sight stressed her beyond anything she'd ever felt before.

"Don't look back!" Ryder cried. "Just keep going!" Alexa was reluctant to effectively abandon the Pokémon protecting her as she fled, but looked ahead of her all the same, focused on getting the urgent medical attention Xavier may well end up needing – or trying to, at least.

The struggle continued until Adelina saw Alexa, Jollie and Ryder stepping across Mistralton's city limit. Phoenix landed on the ground just behind Purukin and Chutney, glaring savagely at Adelina. Phoenix, Chutney and Purukin all appeared to be suffering from heavy injuries of their own, whereas Adelina's Pokémon, for the most part, were barely dented, despite being heavily exhausted – even Carter was out of breath! Adelina reluctantly returned all of her Pokémon, excluding her limping Delcatty, to their Poké Balls. She gave Phoenix and evil look before she turned and walked towards the Celestial Tower.

"Rrrrrgh-rrrrgh-rrgh..."

"Wiggly?"

"Chippa-chippachi?"

"Rrrrgh." Without further debate, Phoenix flew off of the ground and slowly soared into the air. Chutney and Purukin faced each other in confusion before shrugging and slowly began their walk towards Mistralton; occasionally, Purukin flinched and rubbed his back.

"Well, I'll give you a call sometime this week with my final decision," Gulliver said as he left the coffee house with Hayden and Tidus. "After all, decisions like this do take a lot of consideration."

"Take all the time you need; I'm in the midst of some personal problems anyway, so your consideration period will allow me to focus on resolving said problems," Hayden said courteously.

"Family problems?"

"With all due respect, I'd rather not discuss it."

"Fair enough. Well, it was nice to meet you, Thorndyke," Gulliver smiled as he offered his hand to Hayden. Hayden smiled as he shook Gulliver's hand.

"Same to you," he agreed. "How do you plan on returning to-"

"Not to worry, I can wait for my flight at the airport's café," Gulliver said confidently.

"Over another muffin?" Hayden asked in a slight moan. Suddenly, he spotted Alexa and Ryder rushing towards the Pokémon Centre; the sight of the unconscious Xavier being supported between the two of them brought a horrid feeling to him as he began to feel a sense of fear he felt once before. Tidus and Gulliver soon saw the pair hurrying into the Pokémon Centre nearby; Tidus began to feel exactly the same as Hayden, but Gulliver showed little reaction to the sight.

"I don't think that Trainer has any concept of what a Poké Ball is," he grumbled. He suddenly noticed how petrified Hayden looked and became perplexed. "Hm? Are you feeling all right?" Without a single word, Tidus and Hayden sprinted towards the Pokémon Centre, alarming Gulliver. "Hey! Thorndyke!?"

 _To be continued..._


	30. Chapter 30

**Chapter Thirty – Disconcerted**

Keith leaned forward against the Daycare Centre fence and watched as Troy checked over the anxious Pichu in his arms, Harvey standing nearby with a stethoscope hanging from his neck. Daniel stood next to Keith, leaning against the fence in the same fashion, watching with a little less interest; Daphne and Peggy had since left to carry out their day at Striaton Academy. Perri and Michael were nearby, communing with Reese and Robbie over the fence. Eventually, Harvey and Troy approached Keith with Ava.

"Is she okay?" Keith asked as he took Ava back into his arms; Ava was more than pleased to be back with him.

"Considering that you're not an experienced Trainer – or a proper Trainer to begin with – she's a very healthy Pichu," Harvey said happily. "And I see she's a happy one, too."

"How did you come by her anyway?" Troy asked curiously.

"Oh, I was talked into taking part in a raffle and...Ava's egg was the prize..."

"You say that like it's a bad thing," Harvey laughed.

"I didn't think Pokémon eggs being handed out as prizes was common practise, that's all..."

"Pokémon eggs can be obtained through numerous sources," Daniel began. "While most people tend to seek Daycare Centres or Breeding Centres as their main sources, other sources include raffles and even competitions."

"What kind?" Keith asked.

"It doesn't matter; it could be a race, a costume contest...basically anything that can become a fully pledged competition," Daniel answered.

"In either case, it's all perfectly legal, don't worry about that," Harvey winked.

"I dunno...to be honest, I still haven't caught her in the Poké Ball that came with her egg case."

"Why not?" Daniel asked.

"He's a Ranger; they don't use Poké Balls," Harvey explained.

"But you shouldn't worry about it; PLA regulations do consider Pokémon Rangers when it comes to making their laws, so I don't think they'd see you having Ava as being against the law. Actually, they also allow the partner Pokémon of Rangers to be trained for battle."

"Huh? They do?" This was news to Keith.

"I already gave Robbie and Reese a bit of training when you left them with me the other day; if you'd like, I could do the same for Ava."

"Thanks, Troy...but...I'll think about it," Keith said quietly.

"Your call," Troy grinned. "But if you want Alexa to help with that instead, I don't mind."

"I'll ask for her opinion on the matter tomorrow," Keith said quickly. A loud roar echoed around the entire route, catching everyone off guard; Ava was so startled she accidentally shocked Keith with another weak Thundershock attack. While Keith recovered from the shock and tidied his messy hair, the heavily wounded Phoenix sluggishly flew towards the Daycare Centre and staggered as he touched down; seeing his multitude of bruises and cuts alarmed Keith in particular.

"Phoenix! Holy Muk, what happened to you, buddy?!" Troy asked frantically. Phoenix glanced at Troy briefly as he began to pant, but he soon faced Keith in earnest.

"Rhhr...rrr...rrg..." Harvey quickly looked over at Phoenix's injuries from the opposite side of the fence.

"Those are some NASTY bruises...are you sure nothing's broken?"

"Rrrrgh!" Phoenix snarled viciously at Harvey in a vain attempt to make the breeder back away from him. Despite not succeeding in that endeavour, Phoenix returned his focus to Keith and bent down carefully, as though he were suggesting that Keith should climb onto his back. "Rrrrgh..."

"Phoenix, what's going on?" Keith asked worriedly. The only response he got from Phoenix was a look of grave concern.

Hayden and Tidus frantically searched the Mistralton Pokémon Centre until they eventually came across Alexa, Ryder and Jollie in one of the quieter corridors; they all looked highly shaken up in their own right, but Alexa was understandably the most anxious.

"Alexa!" Alexa immediately responded to her father's call and faced him; even with the distance between them, Hayden could see the look of fear in her eyes. Without a second thought, Alexa dashed along the corridor and flung herself into her father's arms; Hayden held onto his distressed daughter comfortingly as she almost alternated between sobbing and hyperventilating. "Hey...what happened?"

"I-I'm so sorry, Dad...!"

"Huh? What are you apologising for?" Hayden asked in befuddlement.

"Alex, none of this is-"

"I-It was Adelina...!"

"What?" Alexa looked up at Hayden; he saw the guilt, fear and anguish clashing in her eyes.

"I'm so sorry...!"

"Hey...!" Hayden held Alexa closer to him, but his attempt to comfort her were all for naught. "Don't worry about her for now...what exactly happened?" he asked carefully.

"Xavier...he's...actually, I don't know what's going on..."

"That's not what I asked," Hayden said quietly.

"Oh, right...we, uh...we got into a battle and...Xavier..."

"...that's all I need to know right now," Hayden said sensitively. He looked down at Alexa, who was still alternating between her hasty breathing and her sobbing. "Xavier's in good hands, there's no reason to-"

"Miss?" The sudden arrival of a Pokémon Centre nurse caught everyone's attention as they quickly faced her anxiously. "About your Zoroark-"

"He's dead, isn't he...?!" Alexa asked fearfully.

"N-No, but he is very seriously ill," the nurse said sincerely. "I'm sorry to have to tell you...but we've had to rush him into Theatre."

"Theatre? What's happened to him?" Hayden asked worriedly.

"He has an acute subdural haematoma in the back of his head...if we don't perform the surgery to deal with it, there is a significant possibility that he will die." The nurse's words added to Alexa's stress, and she was already carrying too much of it before the diagnosis!

"Will he be okay?" Ryder asked sadly.

"Presuming the surgery goes without incident, I would hope so. Excuse me." With a courteous bow, the nurse left Alexa and returned to her duties. Hayden was far from impressed.

"A little sympathy wouldn't go amiss, NURSE," he muttered furiously to himself.

"...it's my fault...!"

"Huh?"

"...it-it's Lydia all over again...!"

"Alex, that's not true," Ryder said gently. "It was Adelina; she-"

"Chippa!" Chutney's call startled even Alexa as he and Purukin slowly but surely made their way over to the group, their cuts and bruises making themselves known to them.

"Chutney, Purukin!" Alexa pulled herself out of Hayden's embrace and virtually collapsed onto her knees as she caught the Pachirisu leaping towards her. Ryder approached the reunion and noticed their wounds; he began to feel guilty about asking them to cover him and Alexa while they fled into Mistralton. Alexa, however, noticed something that stressed her even further. "...where's Phoenix?"

"Wig-"

"Where is he?!" Alexa screamed in a panic. Her stress alarmed Purukin and Chutney, causing them to chuckle nervously.

"W-Wigglytuff...?" Alexa felt as though the extra shock she just received was going to make her faint.

"Pachi?"

"Alexa? Are you-" Alexa suddenly took out a Moon Ball from her belt bag and immediately recalled Purukin. With Purukin inside the Poké Ball, Alexa stood up straight as she pulled out a Friend Ball from the bag.

"Ryder, c'mon, I need to get you and the others healed," she said suddenly as she recalled her confused Pachirisu.

"I'm fine," Ryder insisted.

"Come on!" Alexa exclaimed. Not wanting to put her under any more stress than she already was, Ryder and Jollie reluctantly followed Alexa as she began to race down the corridor.

"Alexa!" Hayden called out to her, but she sped off, dangerously close to tears. Despite not wanting to do so behind Alexa's back, Hayden held his Xtransceiver in front of him. He sighed as he began his Xtransceiver conversation with his wife.

"Hi, sweetie! How did your meeting go?"

"It went well, but that's not why I'm calling..."

"Oh? What happened?" Lily asked with concern. She sat on the sofa in her Castelite hotel room with an open novel on her lap, with her fingers pressing against the pages she was reading from. Keenan and Iara were standing near the room's mini bar fridge; Keenan was looking inside it, trying to decide which soda can and piece of confectionery to consume for his snack.

"To be honest, I don't know the whole story...but..."

"Honey, you sound shaken up." Now Lily's talk with her husband caught Keenan's attention, and just when he'd finally chosen his drink, too.

"If I'm honest, yes, I am..."

"What's wrong?"

"It's Lexie... I don't know what happened, but I've just seen her and Ryder rushing Xavier to the Pokémon Centre in Mistralton..."

"Is he all right?" Lily asked worriedly.

"He's having surgery for a haematoma."

"Oh, gosh...!" Lily was shocked to the core; no wonder Hayden was so concerned. "How bad is it?"

"Acute. Alexa's...not taking it well...she thinks it's Lydia all over again..." After taking his soda out of the fridge and closing it, Keenan and Iara quietly made their way back into their room.

"And she hasn't said anything about what happened?"

"She's completely rattled...she thinks it's Lydia all over again...although she did mention Adelina..."

"Adelina?! What does she have to do with all of this?!"

In the safety of his hotel room, Keenan tossed his snacks onto his bed as he quickly established a contact with his Xtransceiver. In a matter of seconds, Daniel's face appeared on the central screen.

"What is it, Keenan? You look troubled."

"I-I thought you should know..."

"Huh?"

"A-Alex, she...Xavier's really badly hurt..."

"Pokémon get hurt, Keenan, that's a consequence of battling." Keenan had no patience for Daniel's bluntness.

"He has a haematoma, you jerk! But the worst part is...Mum and Dad mentioned Adelina."

"What?! Do you mean SHE was the one Alexa was battling?!"

"I don't know...do you think that's what happened?"

"That would be a reasonable conclusion to jump to, yes. But why would Alexa go out of her way to battle her?"

"Who said she did?" Daniel was intrigued.

"What do you have in mind?"

"No, Alex, Jollie's fine!" Ryder protested as he watched Alexa handing Chutney and Purukin's Poké Balls to the nurse behind the reception desk.

"Will you please just take Jollie with you?!" Alexa asked, trying her hardest not to let herself succumb to her stress.

"I don't need to, she's unscathed! Alex, it's okay to-"

"RYDER! Just...take her with you! Please!" Nobody noticed Phoenix, now more exhausted than before, walking through the automatic doors.

"She doesn't need any-"

"Rrrgh..." Ryder, Alexa and Jollie looked over at the tired and wounded Charizard. Feeling even worse after seeing Phoenix's additional injuries and complete exhaustion, Alexa hurried over to her Charizard.

"Phoenix! Are you okay?! You need to rest-" She suddenly turned to the cheerful nurse behind the reception desk. "Can I get some help here, please?!" she cried desperately. Hearing her plea, the nurse rushed over to her and Phoenix. "My Charizard, he's-"

"Don't worry, love, we'll take care of him," the nurse said kindly. "Would you like me to take your Lucario and Buneary as well?"

"No, we're-"

"Y-Yes, please."

"Alex, I am not going with her and neither is Jollie!" Ryder argued just as Keith walked through the doors with Ava on his shoulder.

"Will you please just go with her?!"

"We don't-"

"Rrrgh!" Ryder turned to his mentor in confusion, but grew concerned when the Charizard shook his head, telling him not to argue with Alexa's overbearing concern. Ryder sighed as he begrudgingly followed Phoenix and the nurse with Jollie. Picking up the Moon and Friend Balls on the way, the nurse escorted the walking Pokémon into an examination room and closed the door behind them. Alexa was on the verge of snapping entirely when Keith finally approached her.

"Alexa?" Alexa gasped when she heard his voice and was even more surprised, albeit relieved beyond all comprehension, to see him standing in front of her.

"Keith!" Keith was alarmed when Alexa suddenly flung herself at him and wrapped her arms around him as her panic returned to her; she began to hyperventilate and choke back her sobs, despite Keith's warm embrace. "I-I'm so glad you're here...!"

"What happened?" Keith asked as he held onto her. "Why was Phoenix-"

"She knows...!"

"Eh?" Keith grew more worried when Alexa faced him eye to eye; she almost looked paranoid – and it was a look that Keith saw once before.

"Adelina! She-she knows about Team Galactic and she threatened me to keep quiet about her activities or she'd tell my family, but then she forced us into a battle and she-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, slow down; you're talking way too fast! Start from the beginning and speak slowly...what happened?"

"...Adelina...heard me and Ryder talking about Team Galactic...!"

"So she knows?"

"...just that they...y-y'know..." Keith nodded understandingly. "...s-she...she blackmailed me to battle her, but...she...she hurt Xavier and...broke his Poké Ball...!"

"She what?!" Keith was fuming with absolute hatred.

"X-Xavier...he's in surgery for an a-acute subdural haematoma...! ...and all because I... ...I...! ...I can't take anymore...!"

"Huh?"

"I-I have to tell them before SHE does...!"

"What?"

"M-Mum and Dad... I-I need to tell them about my past before Adelina does, but, even if they hear it from HER, they're going to hate me for it because I've kept it from them for so long and I was stupid enough to get myself involved in that mess in the first place and—AAH!" Keith suddenly slapped Alexa across the face and placed his hands on her shoulders, looking at her squarely in her eyes.

"Get a hold of yourself! You're not doing yourself any favours!"

"I-I need to tell them, Keith, I-I really do...!" Keith pitied her.

"I agree; it's clear that repressing it is why you're such an emotional wreck – like when Keenan was admitted to hospital in Johto. But, for the love of all things sacred, wait until you're ready!"

"Ready?! Keith, I've had THREE YEARS to get ready for it and I hadn't even THOUGHT to tell them about it – NOT EVEN ONCE!" Alexa was completely overwhelmed with her despair, fear and her guilt; the unhealthy cocktail of emotions made Keith feel even more sorry for her. "Even if I'm not ready for it, I HAVE to tell them now – before they hear it from HER!"

"Alexa..."

"...but...I'm scared..." She wasn't kidding; Keith had never seen Alexa look so terrified before – she was visibly shivering where she stood, her breathing was rapid and she was on the verge of breaking down completely. "...n-no matter who they hear it from...it's...it'll be hard for them to take... ...Dad especially...!"

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Keith asked carefully. Alexa shook her head, but finally lost herself to her tears immediately afterwards. Not knowing what else to do, Keith cuddled her gently; Alexa wept in the security of his arms while Ava watched her sadly from Keith's shoulder.

"Are you kidding me?!" Harvey exclaimed in disbelief. He and Troy were speaking to Hayden and Hailey through Harvey's Xtransceiver; Hailey was equally as horrified as Troy, Perri, Robbie and Reese, but Hayden looked incredibly sincere. "Alexa battled Adelina!?"

"I don't know for sure," Hayden said calmly. "Alexa just mentioned her name and Ryder wasn't specific about the battle they were forced into."

"Come ON, Hayden, you'd have to be born with half a BRAIN to not realise that Adelina forced Alexa to battle her!" Hailey exclaimed violently.

"Nothing of the sort was mentioned-"

"Hayden, read my lips; Adelina battled Alexa! You know what that stupid THING of hers did to Vergil, so it only makes sense that Xavier got hurt because of her!"

"We don't know what Pokémon of hers injured Xavier in the first place."

"You didn't think to ask!?" Hailey asked interrogatively. Hayden lost his patience.

"Alexa thought she was going to lose a second Pokémon, so excuse me for not being an enquiring mind when my daughter's suffering from a traumatic case of deja vu!"

"Is Xavier going to be okay?"

"Zoorr...!" Michael rubbed his head against Perri's hip to calm her down, but not to much success.

"All I know is he's in surgery for head trauma."

"That MILTANK! I can't believe she's still pulling this crap out of her cleavage!"

"That's a little vulgar, Aunt Hailey," Troy said with revulsion.

"I'm sorry, but I don't understand why she'd force Alexa of all people to battle her! Sure, Alexa wasn't at her politest when she first met Adelina, but, still...!"

"Personally, I call BS on the whole idea," Harvey said, starting to become highly annoyed. Hayden felt offended.

"In what way?"

"All I'm saying is I was under the impression that Alexa was trying to stay clear of this whole Adelina epidemic; why would she battle her out of the blue like that?"

"I'm very certain that Alexa didn't intend to battle Adelina!" Hayden said furiously. "Please to note; INTEND!"

"So you think she was forced into it?" Hailey wondered.

"After seeing the state she was in, that's EXACTLY what I'm thinking!"

"I dunno, Hayden, maybe she did what I did and challenged her because she had a chance to get answers for her behaviour."

"Harvey, why are you making Alexa sound like she was in the wrong for doing what you did?!" Hayden asked nastily.

"Hey! In case either of you hadn't noticed, Adelina is supposed to be MY supposed friend; why would she even battle anyone OTHER than me?!" Troy observed the argument worriedly; it appeared to him that his father, aunt and uncle were all turning against each other.

"She had no reason to accept Harvey's challenge, what makes you think she had a reason to get a battle from Alexa?!" Hailey enquired further, walking around her circular kitchen table. Daniel and Rhonda watched Hailey arguing with Harvey and Hayden from the kitchen doorway; Rhonda looked worried, but Daniel was alarmed to see his mother turning against her brothers. It was almost as if the entire family was falling apart!

"It doesn't matter what happened and how it happened right now; one of my daughter's Pokémon is going through surgery as we speak and she's terrified that he might die!"

"We can't sweep this under the rug, Hayden—"

"I'm not intending to, Harvey, I'm taking a rain check on it while Xavier's life is on the line!"

"So you're not interested in asking Adelina if the accusation's even true?!" Hailey asked angrily.

"Accusation!? Now you're saying Alexa's made everything up?!" Hayden questioned furiously.

"That's low, Hailey."

"Says the one who called BS on the matter!" Hailey retorted.

"Mum, I think you should-"

"Not now, Daniel, please," Hailey said quietly, not even bothering to acknowledge her son with eye contact.

"Why would you even speculate that Alexa's made everything up?! She's a terrible liar and she'd never fabricate any circumstances leading to the critical injury of any of her Pokémon!" Hayden said in valiant defence.

"I don't know, Hayden, but, like you said, we don't have the full story!"

"Weren't you the one who came to the conclusion that Alexa battled Adelina to begin with?!" Harvey enquired. Daniel was about to speak up again.

"Dad, please, calm down-"

"It's a reasonable presumption based on what Hayden was told!" Hailey exclaimed in frustration, cutting off Troy's attempt to quell the dispute. Colin sighed as he approached the kitchen doorway.

"What's going on now?"

"Mum's arguing with Uncles Harvey and Hayden..."

"Eh? Excuse me." Rhonda moved aside to allow Colin access to the kitchen. "Hailey, I can hear you from-"

"What other conclusion could there be?!"

"I don't know, but I'll see if Alexa will be willing to divulge me AFTER Xavier's away from death's door!"

"Hailey, what's-"

"Colin, could you please just give me a minute, please?!" Hailey snapped.

"Hailey, I could hear you from my office; can you not raise your voice while I'm working?!"

"Oh, I'm so sorry that we're inconveniencing you!"

"Everyone stop it!" Daniel shouted. But, alas, his words fell on deaf ears.

"Lashing out on Colin isn't going to make this issue go away, Hailey!" Harvey said angrily.

"Look, the two of you can bicker all you like, but I have certain priorities that require my attention!" Hayden fumed before hanging up on Harvey and Hailey.

"Now look what you've done!"

"What I'VE done?!" Hailey questioned in anger as she returned her attention to Harvey. Daniel sighed as he began to watch his father getting involved in his mother's argument; the more he observed the verbal fight, the more he began to believe that he was witnessing precisely what Peggy had previously talked to him about – the prospect began to worry him.

 _To be continued..._


	31. Chapter 31

**Chapter Thirty One – Consternation**

Hayden sighed heavily as he and Tidus walked down the corridor leading to the Pokémon Centre's main foyer, where they spotted Keith cradling Alexa in his arms; her sobbing ceased, but her breathing was still shaky. Hayden and Tidus approached the pair slowly.

"Keith?" Keith looked over at Hayden, who appeared to be both surprised and relieved to see him. "Good to see you."

"Y-Yeah..." Alexa looked up at Hayden from Keith's embrace; it was evident that her stress and anxiety were finally taking their toll on her, as she looked exhausted. Seeing the tiredness in her sore eyes concerned Hayden.

"Hey..." Hayden gently stroked the part of her hair that Keith's hand wasn't holding onto. "It's going to be all right..."

"...no, it won't..." Alexa sounded as exhausted as she looked; her voice was reduced to nothing more than a relatively breathless whisper. Hayden pitied her.

"Yes, it will," Keith said gently, ever so slightly tightening his grip on her. "Have faith."

"Miss?" Keith loosened his embrace to allow Alexa to face the nurse who took her Pokémon into care; Phoenix was virtually covered in bandages and Ryder had a few plasters over his own bumps, whereas Jollie was perfectly healthy. "Your Pokémon are all going to be fine, but I wouldn't recommend your Charizard to fly for a couple of days."

"Phoenix, why is it you let yourself get crippled like that so easily all the time?" Ryder growled.

"Rrrr...!" Phoenix wasn't happy about his temporary inability to fly either, but he was less than happy about Ryder's crass remark. Alexa took Phoenix's Poké Ball from her belt bag and quickly returned her Charizard to its sanctuary.

"T-Thank you..."

"I've taken the liberty of examining your Wigglytuff and Pachirisu for myself," the nurse added, handing Alexa the Moon and Friend balls. "They're both fine; they just need to rest for a few days." Alexa placed both Poké Balls into her belt bag.

"Thank you..."

"Nurse? How's Xavier? He's my daughter's Zoroark," Hayden enquired.

"I honestly have no idea, I wasn't part of the team taking care of him... I'll find out for you," the nurse said generously as she made her way down one of the two corridors behind her. Alexa began to feel anxious again.

"I wasn't the one taking all of this news personally!" Harvey said angrily, still talking with Hailey through his Xtransceiver. Daniel rolled his eyes as the argument between the two continued, but the Pokémon were becoming distressed, Perri and Michael in particular.

"I wasn't the one calling BS on the whole thing, though, Harvey!" Hailey retorted violently.

"Oh, yeah, let's all go pointing fingers, that'll solve EVERYTHING!"

"Dad, shut up!"

"Don't be sarcastic, Harvey! And Adelina's MY problem, not Alexa's, so excuse me if I can't understand why this happened!"

"Then find Adelina – or Alexa – and get to the bottom of it!" Harvey argued back, ignoring Troy entirely.

"I don't know where they are, smartass!"

"Hailey, I swear to Arceus I'll-"

"Alexa has this wonderful invention called the Xtransceiver; try using it!" Harvey shouted nastily, cutting Colin off completely.

"Dad, stop it, you're behaving like a child!" Troy exclaimed forcefully.

"How else are we talking right now, genius?!" Hailey snapped viciously. Troy groaned, realising that his aunt and father weren't going to listen to him, and walked away from the debate. He tried to drown out the juvenile banter, but without success. However, he soon spotted Daniel running down the path towards Striaton City; he hopped over the fence and intercepted his hurrying cousin.

"Whoa, what's rattled your cage this time?"

"Nothing you don't know about already, but I was actually on my way to Striaton Academy," Daniel explained quickly.

"Ah; letting the girls know about what's going on?" Troy presumed.

"Of course."

"I'll, uh...tag along; our parents are still fighting like Meowths and Growlithes," Troy said, hinting at the elder Breeder arguing at his Xtransceiver.

"Oh, for goodness' sake... The sooner we can nip this in the bud, the better..."

"No kidding," Troy groaned as he followed Daniel as he sped towards Striaton City. Lukie scrambled over the fence and hurried along after his Trainer. Nobody noticed the Beautifly fluttering away from the roof of Troy's Daycare Centre.

"Your Pokémon are all fit and healthy now, Ms Cross," the nurse said politely as she handed five Poké Balls to Adelina over the main reception desk. She accepted her Poké Balls without so much as a smile, but the nurse didn't seem to be bothered by her lack of manners. "Take care of yourself now!"

"You, too, thank you," Adelina grumbled as she made her way out of the Pokémon Centre, Huey limping alongside her; his front left leg was wrapped in nice and clean bandages, but the Delcatty flinched when he tried putting even the smallest amount of weight on it.

Outside the Icirrus City Pokémon Centre, Adelina sighed heavily out of frustration as she began to make her way to the large coffee shop not too far from the entrance to the towering Dragonspiral Tower in the distance.

"That could have gone so much better," she complained. "Honest to Arceus, it is SO fortunate the Unovan Government issued that straightforward path through Twist Mountain..."

"Reow...!"

"I know, baby, and I'm sorry I made you go into your Poké Ball when we arrived there, but I didn't want you hurting yourself even further," Adelina said endearingly. "But don't you worry; the ball's still in our court," she winked.

"Beau!" Adelina and Huey looked up as Silvia flew over to them. She then whispered something in Adelina's ear; whatever it was Silvia was saying alarmed Adelina.

"They're arguing already?! But I haven't said anything about Alexa's little bombshell yet."

"Reow?"

"No, honey, I don't think Alexa's said anything herself...but...maybe they just found out about Carter's handiwork on her Zoroark," Adelina guessed.

"Beautifly?" Adelina shook her head.

"I'm not concerned in the slightest, darling; I just didn't anticipate the family falling apart at the seams this early on, that's all. Oh, well, not to worry; just keep an eye on Hailey for me, darling – and stay inconspicuous this time."

"Beautifly!" Silvia flew away quickly and eventually left the city entirely. Huey spotted the coffee shop looming closer to him and Adelina with each step they took and looked up at Adelina hopefully.

"R-Reow?"

"We are indeed, my pet. We are in DIRE need of cake."

The sunny nurse returned to the main foyer and walked over to Alexa, who had finally left the comfort of Keith's arms entirely, but still appeared anxious and exhausted, much to the concern of Hayden, Jollie, Ryder and Keith.

"Sorry to have kept you waiting, miss," the nurse apologised courteously. "Your Zoroark's still in surgery and he won't be out for at least four hours."

"Four hours...?!" Alexa panicked.

"But there's no way she can wait that long!" Keith argued in protest. The nurse's smile finally waned.

"I apologise, but Zoroark – Xavier, was it? - is undergoing a procedure called a craniotomy." The nurse looked at Alexa and immediately noticed her stress. "I don't think it's wise for me to explain the procedure in your current emotional state, miss, but it's one that usually takes four to six hours to perform; if you're wanting to wait for him, you'll most likely be here until the evening hours."

"M-Mmhmm," Alexa nodded timidly.

"Lexie, no, you can't wait here for that long; you're too worked up as it is, waiting here will only tire you out even more," Hayden said worriedly.

"I-I need to know if he's going to make it," Alexa said quietly.

"You're not obligated to wait HERE for him, miss," the nurse said comfortingly. "You're free to wait wherever you feel most comfortable; we can contact you when your Zoroark's out of surgery."

"Yeah, go with that, Alexa," Keith said encouragingly. "You can go back to your hotel room and get some rest while-"

"N-No..." Alexa's immediate refusal worried Keith further.

"Alexa, come on...!"

"I-I need to be here...!"

"Xavier's going to be unconscious during the surgery, he won't notice either way," Hayden said carefully. "I can call your mother and ask her to send Cheryl to pick us up-"

"No." Keith had an inkling as to why Alexa was adamant to remain in the Pokémon Centre and sighed.

"Lexie, it hasn't even been an hour since the surgery began and look at what the anxiety's done to you! Look, Xavier's in the best possible hands right now, there's nothing more you can do for him."

"But, Dad, I-"

"Listen to him, Alexa," Keith said gently. He moved slightly closer to her to speak softly in her ear. "The last thing you want is a repeat of Keenan's surgery."

"...b-but...!" Alexa eventually sighed shakily. "...okay..." Hayden sighed with relief.

"That's my girl... I'll go ahead and call your mother. Keith, can you-?" A simple nod from Keith answered Hayden's plea to look after Alexa before he could even finish his question. Hayden smiled at Keith before walking away from him and Alexa with Tidus as he contacted Lily through his Xtransceiver.

"Would you like us to contact you once your Zoroark's out of surgery, miss?" Alexa nodded in response to the nurse's question. "How would you like to be contacted?"

"...m-my Xtransceiver," Alexa replied quietly. "...my number's 036484..." The nurse nodded as she quickly jotted the number down on the back of her hand with the ballpoint pen she flushed out from her front pocket.

"I'll contact you personally as soon as I hear anything," she said kindly. "Try not to worry, though, miss; your Zoroark is in good hands."

"...thank you..."

"You're most welcome," the nurse said courteously just before she returned to the reception desk at the far end of the foyer. With a little more privacy between them, Keith confronted Alexa.

"Were you trying to stall for time?" he asked quietly.

"N-No, I- ...partly..."

"I know you need to tell your Mom and Dad, but do you really have to tell them now?" Alexa appeared more hesitant than ever.

"I don't have a choice...it'll be slightly better if-if they hear it from me..." Ryder and Jollie observed the conversation sadly.

"Are you absolutely sure that I can't do anything to help?" Keith asked anxiously. "I mean, I...I can help you explain what happened if-"

"No. ...I appreciate the offer, but...it'll be bad enough for Mum and Dad to hear what Ryder and I went through...without...without knowing that you knew the whole time..." Keith felt helpless, but nodded respectfully.

"I'll be heading back to my hotel room once you're gone; if you need me, that's where I'll be."

"What about Robbie and Reese?" Ryder asked.

"Uh..."

"You can ask Steven to pick them up," Alexa suggested quietly.

"Hm?"

"My Aunt Naomi's Gallade? S-Surely you've met him by now..."

"Oh, yeah, I have! What can he do?"

"H-He knows Teleport; h-he can pick up the boys a-and drop them off with you..." Alexa was startled when Keith suddenly planted a kiss on her forehead; Jollie in particular was smiling when she saw Alexa blushing rather heavily.

"You are amazing, you know that? I wouldn't even have thought of that myself, thank you so much!"

Uh...y-you're welcome...?" From over Keith's shoulder, Alexa spotted Cheryl suddenly appearing in the Pokémon Centre through a brief white flash and sighed. "I guess it's time..."

"Just remember that I'm here for you if you need me." Alexa looked conflicted; was she really ready to confide in Keith like she used to? And about something so traumatic to her, no less? She did feel safe in Keith's embrace, but she still harboured a small amount of doubt after he'd crushed her feelings not too long ago. However, she also knew that, if things turned sour, she'd need all the support she could get, and Keith was offering his to her without a speck of hesitation.

"...thank you, Keith..."

"Of course." Hayden approached Alexa.

"Lexie? You ready?" Alexa nodded and was about to walk over to Cheryl.

"I'll see you later, Kitten," Keith whispered. Alexa felt warm and fuzzy; she hadn't heard him use his special pet name for her in what felt like a long time. Ryder looked up at Keith worriedly, but Keith gave Ryder the same look. "Look after her."

"I plan to," Ryder said confidently as he followed Alexa. Keith watched as Cheryl quickly disappeared from the Pokémon Centre with Hayden, Alexa and their respective Pokémon in the blink of an eye. He then gently stroked his Pichu's head to ease her worries; in return, Ava nuzzled Keith's hand affectionately.

"No way! Our parents were arguing!?" Daphne asked in shock. She and Peggy were on Striaton Academy's playing field, talking to Daniel and Troy over the fence while the rest of the students behind them were playing around. "But they've never argued as far as I can remember!"

"They haven't," Troy confirmed. "At least, until this afternoon..."

"Were they fighting about Adelina?" Peggy asked nervously.

"Close; Adelina is involved...but so was Alexa."

"Huh?! What happened?!" Daphne asked insistently.

"Xavier got hurt really badly and Adelina's name came up; Keenan and I worked out that Adelina somehow got Alexa to battle her, and we presume it was by force, considering how Alexa was keen to stay away from her in light of her own problems," Daniel explained.

"Oh, no...! Please tell me Xavier's okay!"

"I heard Uncle Hayden mentioning surgery for head trauma."

"Oh, my days...!" Daphne felt distressed. "And I thought Vergil's injuries were horrific...!"

"Do you think Xavier would be okay if I said something to Mummy about Adelina wanting to break the whole family?"

"She what?" This was news to Troy, but Daniel smiled kindly at his youngest sister.

"It's okay, Peggy; we can make sure that they don't fall apart."

"If we pull together, it'll be a piece of cake," Daphne added, her optimism swiftly returning to her. "Adelina is NOT going to get away with anything she's done, and I'm NOT going to let her win!"

"I'll second that," Troy agreed. Lukie nodded in agreement.

"If we can make sure our parents don't argue any more than they already have, we'll be able to stop Adelina's little game," Daniel said confidently.

"Right; we'll show her that this is ONE family tree that's IMPOSSIBLE to uproot!" Troy smiled eagerly. Peggy and the twins nodded in complete agreement.

"You really shouldn't have taken your frustration out on your brothers!" Colin scolded as Hailey hung up on Harvey. "I know you're angry, but-"

"Our niece could potentially lose a second Pokémon to death at the hands of a woman who is supposed to be my friend-"

"Would anyone attack their friend's niece out of the blue like that?! Hailey, I think we can establish that the Adelina we thought we knew is long gone at this point in time!"

"I'm sorry, okay?! I'm..." Hailey was finally calming down. "I'm sorry...I did take what happened to Alexa personally and I shouldn't have..." Colin smiled gently.

"Adelina was involved somehow; I should have realised it would be hard for you not to have taken it personally."

"Even so, I shouldn't have... And I'm sorry I disturbed you, Colin...I didn't mean to."

"It's okay, Hailey, I forgive you. But I'm not the one who needs an apology for your behaviour...I don't think."

"You're right... Hayden's got a lot on his plate at the moment, so I'll apologise to him in a few hours... I'll apologise to Harvey once I've apologised to Daniel as well..."

"Attagirl, Honeybee."

Cheryl suddenly appeared in Hayden's hotel room with Hayden, Alexa and the other Pokémon faster than anyone could even blink. Hayden returned Tidus to his Poké Ball as Keenan sprung up from the sofa and flung his arms around his emotionally exhausted sister. Lily returned Cheryl to her Poké Ball as she approached her husband.

"Is everything okay?" she asked quietly.

"He's still in surgery; it's going to take at least four hours," Hayden explained in a quiet murmur.

"Oh, gosh..." Lily smiled at Alexa, who was virtually clinging to her little brother. "Alexa, sweetie, why don't you get some rest?"

"You have had a trying day, after all-"

"No," Alexa said hastily as she suddenly faced her parents; Keenan looked up at her in confusion. "N-No, I n-need to tell you something."

"I'm sure what you want to tell us-"

"I said NEED, not WANT," Alexa snapped fearfully. Hayden and Lily looked at one another in bewilderment.

"Even so," Lily began. "I'm sure whatever it is can wait until-"

"No! I-I need to tell you now!"

"Does it HAVE to be now, though?" Ryder asked nervously.

"Yes, Ryder, it does!" Alexa said adamantly.

"Alex, why are you so scared of something you're keen to tell us?" Keenan asked with concern. Alexa's silence, however, worried him further. "Alex?"

"Alex, honestly, it can wait," Ryder said comfortingly.

"NO, IT CAN'T!" Alexa cried desperately. Hayden started to feel scared for Alexa; whatever it was she 'needed' to tell him, it was clear that it was also upsetting her.

"Alexa, what's wrong? Surely what you wa-need to tell us can't be THAT frightening," Hayden said nervously. Alexa faced her father with tears lying dormant in her eyes.

"...wanna bet...?" Hayden and Lily were perplexed, Keenan was worried sick, but Ryder had a bad feeling about what Alexa was going to say.

 _To be continued..._


	32. Chapter 32

**Chapter Thirty Two – Shattered**

Troy and Daniel walked up the steps leading to the Route 3 Daycare Centre, where Harvey was busy attempting to quell the anxieties of the Pokémon who overheard the disturbing news about Alexa's Zoroark and the argument between him and his younger siblings; despite his efforts, however, Perri still appeared to be riddled with worry for her son – not even Michael's comforting settled her nerves! Harvey soon spotted his son and nephew approaching him and stood up, looking at them with annoyance.

"Oi! What was that all about, why did you run off like that!?"

"Look, I'm sorry, okay, but I couldn't handle hearing you arguing with Aunt Hailey and Uncle Hayden for much longer," Troy apologised. Harvey sighed as he ran his fingers through his fringe.

"Sorry, sport... I don't even know what happened; I was frustrated about what happened to Alexa and-"

"I get it, but you didn't need to implicate that Alexa chose to battle Adelina!"

"You're right...I'll apologise to her once everything's settled; she's got too much on her plate as it is." Harvey chuckled nervously. "Kinda blows my whole travelling idea out of the water, though... Where DID you disappear to anyway?"

"We just informed my sisters about what's been going on," Daniel explained bluntly. "I was going to go alone, but I agreed to let Troy join me, considering the circumstances at the time."

"Yeah, I'm sorry you had to see that..."

"Personally, I paid it little heed, especially after hearing my mother's side of it all. Anyway, I'm on my way home now to see if I can calm things down, implying they haven't already."

"I'll join you," Harvey said, hopping over the fence. At the exact same time, Troy hopped over the fence and joined the Pokémon in the paddock.

"I don't need an escort," Daniel said sceptically.

"I didn't say that; I need to see your mother anyway," Harvey laughed. "Apologies are better delivered in person, after all."

"True enough, I suppose," Daniel shrugged. "I'll keep in touch, Troy," he said begrudgingly.

"Sure, if you want," Troy replied with lacking enthusiasm. "Say hi to Aunt Hailey for me!"

"Will do," Harvey nodded as he and Daniel made their way towards Nacrene City. As soon as Daniel and Harvey left, Troy was about to resume his duty of care when, out of nowhere, a white flash brought forth the firm figure of a Gallade; the Gallade's sudden arrival startled the younger Pokémon nearby.

"Steven, hi! What can I do for you?" Troy asked happily. Steven looked around and spotted the apprehensive Robbie and Reese staring cautiously at him. Steven, however, stared blankly back at them.

"Lade."

Keith walked up what looked like a man-made pathway over Chargestone Cave; he appeared to be having some difficulties in walking up the steep incline, but Ava was resting comfortably on his shoulder, occasionally patting him encouragingly until he finally arrived at the very top of the cave. He stopped to catch his breath and to admire the Unovan view in front of him; Driftveil City was literally a stone's throw away from his location with Nimbasa City not too far away, the Ferris Wheel being the most notable sign indicating the city's location, and even Castelia City was in Keith's line of sight, despite it being impossible to tell which city landmark gave away its location due to the sheer number of skyscrapers in the city.

"...I wish I was there."

"Pichu?"

"Castelia City...with her."

"Pichu-Pichu?" Keith nodded.

"I...I know she said that I couldn't do anything to help her and my being there would make things worse, but...it doesn't feel right that I'm not there, y'know?" Keith finally began his walk down the path and downhill towards the route leading towards Driftveil City. "If nothing else, I could have helped her tell the story, even though she said me knowing about it would cause problems..."

"Pichu?" Ava was completely confused; why was Keith talking to her like she was talking to a parent?

"But, in the long run, it doesn't even matter if I know, right? I mean, if she's coming out with it, then it doesn't matter that I know, given how I'm related to her, right?"

"Pi..."

"No, that doesn't sound right...maybe Alexa has a point, but it doesn't change the fact that I should have gone with her..." He sighed. "I dunno... ...I just hope she's doing okay..."

"Pichu..."

"As soon as the boys are back and once we've had a rest, I'm taking Robbie and going to Castelia City to see her; I want to know if everything turned out okay for her and, if not, be there for her. I know she said I couldn't do anything, but I need to know if she's okay!" To Ava's concern, Keith suddenly stopped halfway down the path. "...I need to do anything and everything I can to make things right..."

Daniel walked into the kitchen, where Colin and the much calmer Hailey sat at the table over a calming chamomile tea. The two seemed to be much more relaxed, much to Daniel's relief.

"Hey." Colin and Hailey finally noticed Daniel in the doorway and were mildly surprised to see Harvey making his way over to them as well.

"Harvey! We didn't expect to see you here."

"Yeah, I wanted to apologise in person," Harvey said humbly. "I shouldn't have lashed out on you like that and I shouldn't have accused Alexa of choosing to battle Adelina..."

"I'm sorry, too, Harvey; I shouldn't have taken the news so personally..."

"We don't blame you, Honeybee, we just didn't appreciate your attitude towards the whole thing," Colin said kindly.

"You're right..." Hailey looked up at Daniel with guilt written all over her face. "And I'm sorry I brushed you off, sweetheart...I know you wanted to help me, but-"

"It's all right; I'm just glad you've stopped fighting."

"It's never nice to see your parents fighting; I understand," Colin smiled.

"Not just that."

"Huh?" Hailey was confused.

"Haven't any of you noticed how you turn on each other AFTER Adelina's been around our airspace?" Daniel asked openly. "This is what Adelina's after; she wants us to fall apart!"

"I don't get it; what are you saying?" Harvey asked.

"I'm saying that everyone in this family turning on each other over virtually nothing is exactly what Adelina's trying to accomplish; arguing with each other is playing right into her hands and you can't do that!" Colin felt disturbed.

"Are you telling me that she...? She...?"

"That she kissed your father deliberately?!"

"I...would imagine so...?" Daniel felt awkward; all he recalled from that incident was Colin's extremely crude description of the act in question – he didn't see the actual event with his own eyes. "But Keenan and I speculate that Adelina did, in fact, force Alexa to battle her; Alexa knew to steer clear, having stated her attempt to do so yesterday to Keenan, which would make the idea that Alexa challenged Adelina willingly contradictory to that statement."

"I didn't think Alexa would battle her willingly..."

"I'll apologise to Hayden for saying otherwise," Harvey said seriously.

"Speaking of which, I should apologise to him as well," Hailey said as she initiated a contact with her Xtransceiver.

"Hailey, isn't it a little too soon? You did say you'd wait a few hours..."

"I know, I know, but what if what Daniel said is true?"

"That Adelina forced Alexa to battle her? What would she have to use against Alexa?" Colin asked.

"Lydia, perhaps?" Daniel presumed.

"Nah; her death isn't a secret," Harvey said quickly. Hailey looked at her Xtransceiver as she commanded it to connect to Hayden's Xtransceiver, but was puzzled when the contact was dropped as quickly as it formed.

"That's odd."

"What is it?" Colin asked.

"Hayden hung up."

"How is that odd? Maybe he's still in a bit of a sour mood or maybe he doesn't want to be interrupted," Harvey guessed.

"No, no, no, you don't understand; he hung up after as my Xtransceiver connected to his. Like, immediately after..."

"So one ring and he hung up?" Colin asked.

"I guess so; it's like...he hung up without thinking about who was calling him..."

The atmosphere in the hotel room was filled with heavy tension; Hayden stood near one far corner of the room with his hand held over his Xtransceiver and his body slightly turned away from the rest of his family, trying to combat his anger and despair, Keenan sat on the sofa with a look of horror in his eyes and Lily was sick with worry. Alexa, however, looked the worst; her eyes were sore from her tears and reflected her sense of dread and fear as she stared at her father. Ryder stood in front of her, almost protectively, as he kept his eye on Hayden and what his reaction would be, while Jollie looked up at Alexa with her own sense of fear. The silence only served to unnerve Alexa further as she looked at the man avoiding eye contact with her.

"...Dad...?" Alexa's feeble attempt to attract Hayden's attention were for naught; if nothing else, Alexa speaking up again only made it harder for Hayden to fight back his emotions – he clenched his Xtransceiver.

"...Hayden, please, say something...!" When Hayden made eye contact with her, it was clear to Lily that anger was the dominant emotion; the glare in his eyes could intimidate a Gyarados on a bad day.

"What's there to say?! Three years ago, our daughter was kidnapped when she decided to play the vigilante for some stupid reason!" As soon as Hayden spoke up, Alexa recoiled; she knew he was furious, but his anger still alarmed and scared her; Ryder upped his guard in a heartbeat and tried to match the enraged glare Hayden had turned on his distraught daughter. "I mean, what were you THINKING?! Do you have ANY idea how RECKLESS you were being?!"

"T-The mugging aside, I-I didn't have a choice...!"

"Care to explain that!?" In that moment, Alexa was reacquainted with the same level of fear she experienced during the incident she was being interrogated about; while she was expecting this feeling, it hadn't changed its impact on her – she looked away from Hayden, trying to keep her eyes glued on one of Ryder's pointy ears.

"...t-the SPD wouldn't listen to me...a-and I-I didn't know about the IP at the time..."

"So you decided to take the law into your own hands?!" Ryder had no appreciation for Hayden's grilling while Alexa was in such a vulnerable state; as the argument progressed, neither did Lily.

"I-I exhausted all of my options, what was I supposed to do?!" Alexa asked tearfully. Ryder began to snarl deeply at Hayden while Lily looked at him disapprovingly.

"Left them alone would have been a valid option!"

"YOU WEREN'T THERE!" Alexa screamed; despite mostly being afraid and distressed, there was a hint of anger in her voice. Lily hurried over to Alexa and wrapped her arms around her; to her concern, however, Alexa didn't seem to show any reaction to her embrace.

"Honey, it's okay, there's-"

"Okay?!" Hayden shouted furiously. "HOW IS ANY OF THIS OKAY?!"

"Hayden, stop it!" Lily snapped. The dispute was starting to stress Keenan out as well as Alexa; both of them began to hyperventilate, but Alexa was choking back sobs at the same time – she often struggled to breathe clearly. "Her Zoroark's having surgery as we speak! Must we press her about this now?!"

"She insisted on it, Lily!" Hayden said defensively.

"Yes; to tell us about it, not to go through this cross-examination! It can wait!" For some reason, Hayden gave off a small laugh.

"Wait!? It's taken her three years to tell us the whole story, Lily; how much longer do you want us to wait before we get to the bottom of why she decided to play the fool's game?!"

That was the final straw for Alexa; with those harsh words, she forced herself out of her mother's supposedly calming embrace and fled the room. Ryder and Jollie immediately hurried after her, but Lily caught the hotel room door before Ryder could slam it closed behind him. Lily looked down the corridor, but saw Alexa disappearing around a corner, her Pokémon in hot pursuit.

"Alexa, wait!" Her cries were left unheard; Alexa and her Pokémon had disappeared from the entire floor and were on their way to who knows where. During the commotion, Keenan jumped up from the sofa and shut himself up in the bedroom he shared with Alexa; Lily heard the door slamming and sighed as she gently closed the door to the entire room. She looked back at the torn Hayden with annoyance. "You KNEW what Alexa was going through BEFORE she confessed her tribulations to us; why did you have to make things even worse for her?"

"You heard what she said, Lily; she admitted-"

"I know what she said..." Lily sighed. "She's a vulnerable child right now, Hayden, she doesn't need any more pressure – you know she can't cope with such high levels of stress!"

"She should have thought of that before she somehow decided to tell us about it!"

Keenan sat on the floor leaning against the door, listening in on his parents as they had a small argument of their own; Keenan was still horrified over what he had heard, but he paid attention to what his parents were saying.

"She said she needed to tell us, Hayden; it's our responsibility to hear her out if she has something she needs to tell us, even if we don't like what we hear."

"How did you expect me to react when I heard the word 'kidnapped', huh?! Do the Happy Dance around a sombrero?!"

"Don't be stupid, Hayden-"

"Why would she even tell us about this NOW of all times, huh?! Why would she tell us about it if it's completely unrelated to what happened to Xavier?!" That was a question that began to plague Keenan's mind; somehow, it allowed him to calm down a little as well.

"I don't know, Hayden; maybe it was the stress."

"Oh, yeah, I get it now!" Hayden yelled sarcastically. "I can just picture it now; 'Hey, Dad, my Zoroark's having brain surgery, mind if I tell you I was kidnapped three years ago'?! I'm sorry, Lily, but that doesn't sound like something ANYONE would do, whatever their state of mind!"

"Hayden, for your sake, you had better calm down before Alexa decides to come back..."

"I know you're concerned about Uncle Hayden, but why don't you just fly to Castelia City?" Daniel asked as he watched Hailey putting her coat on with Colin's assistance; Colin already had his black fleece on and zipped up.

"The more time Hayden has to calm down, the better," Harvey replied with a smile. "You already know he's not as emotionally stable as your mother and I."

"Daniel, if we're not back by the time school's out, I need you to get your sisters home safely." Daniel was perplexed.

"I only walked them to school because I didn't want to stick around for the morning argument; now that an afternoon one is off the table, why do I need to escort them? Daphne has her Pokémon-"

"All of whom battle better alongside yours," Hailey concluded. Daniel nodded understandingly.

"You want me to be with them in case Adelina tries anything on us." Hailey nodded.

"We're counting on you, buddy," Colin said as he patted Daniel on the shoulder on his way out of the kitchen with his wife and brother-in-law.

"What about Peggy?" Daniel asked as he followed the adults. The Beautifly peeping into the house decided to fly away.

"If she does try something, I want you to make sure Peggy's safe," Hailey replied as she walked outdoors with Colin and Harvey. Daniel remained at the front door and listened to his instructions. "If you feel that Peggy's in any sort of danger, you tell her to run back here and wait in the museum."

"I'll make sure of that under Polonius's protection," Daniel said affirmatively.

"We'll call if we're going to be late, honey; see you later," Hailey smiled as she left the porch with Harvey and Colin. Daniel waved them farewell before he closed and locked the front door after returning to the house.

Silvia flew over Castelia City on her way from Nacrene City. From a bird's eye view, she spotted the distraught Alexa fleeing into Castelia Park, a fenced off area of luscious greenery with a large Leavanny water fountain in the very centre. Seeing Ryder and Jollie in pursuit, Silvia flew discreetly down towards the park and hid in one of the bushes near the water fountain, where Alexa finally stopped; she knelt in front of the fountain and buried her face in her arms as she sobbed breathlessly. Ryder and Jollie finally caught up to Alexa and were worried when they saw her crying.

"...you okay?" Ryder asked quietly. Alexa stopped her sobbing, but showed Ryder little acknowledgement, making the Lucario feel nervous. "Uh, right...that's a stupid question... ...listen, Alex...I...I-I thought you were brave when you told them."

"Buneary," Jollie nodded in agreement.

"...doesn't matter anyway...m-my Dad's hurt...my brother's crushed...my Mum's rattled... ...I've broken this family...!"

"No, Alex, it's not your-"

"I should have said something sooner...!" Ryder approached Alexa and crouched next to her, looking at her sympathetically.

"You're letting Hayden's anger get the better of you."

"But he's right, though...! ...what I did was reckless... ...I don't even know what I was thinking..."

"Now you're REALLY letting his anger get the better of you; look, Alex, he wasn't there, he doesn't know what the stakes were!"

"...if he does...it-it'll only make things worse...! ...all I wanted to do was to help Professor Rowan...! ...I-I didn't want things to get so far...!" Alexa began to sob again. Pitying her, Ryder gave her a gentle cuddle as she wept into the base of the water fountain.

"I know, Alex...I know..."

As Alexa and Ryder's conversation took place in front of the water fountain, Silvia was unable to hear the topic discussed for the falling water; she quietly flew away in frustration.

"...n-now my Dad's hurt...I...!"

"Do you want to see Keith?" Ryder asked.

"...n-no..." Alexa calmed down somewhat as she raised her head from her arms; instead, she sadly stared at her reflection in the water in front of her. "...but..."

"But?"

"...I-I will if I can't make things right with Dad...I-I didn't mean to hurt him..."

"Jollie and I will support whatever decision you make."

"Bun, Bun," Jollie agreed faithfully.

"...thank you..."

Silvia flew over to Adelina and Huey, who were sitting at a table outside a rustic-looking coffee house; Adelina enjoyed a very tall glass of mocha latte, but she and Huey each had a thick slice of what looked like a luxurious chocolate gateau – Huey had crumbs and smudges of chocolate icing riddling his face. Silvia landed on Adelina's shoulder and whispered in her ear; Adelina listened intently for about a minute before chuckling to herself – once she returned her latte glass to the table, of course.

"Sounds like I don't need to cause any more damage...but I'll do it anyway. Good work, Silvia," she smiled as she held a red carnation in front of the scout Beautifly.

"BEAU!" Silvia seemed to squeal with delight as she accepted her reward; he didn't hesitate to begin tucking into the silky smooth petals.

"Reeooo?" Huey asked with a mouthful of gateau.

"No, honey, Alexa's damaged enough from the sounds of it, so she's off limits." Adelina smirked. "That just leaves Hailey's litter..."

 _To be continued..._


	33. Chapter 33

**Chapter Thirty Three – Confrontations pt 1**

Keith stood in front of a jewellery stand in the Driftveil Market, which was bustling with shoppers visiting the numerous stalls with their Pokémon. One of the stalls sold an assortment of clothes that included fedora hats and wool sweatshirts, one sold a variety of dairy products and another sold fresh vegetables; Ava watched as a small Fennekin sniffed one of the carrots with curiosity as his Trainer spoke to the stall owner regarding what she wanted from his stand – it was fortunate that the Trainer wanted carrots in her order, as her Fennekin helped himself to one while she was distracted, much to Ava's amusement. Keith, meanwhile, accepted a gift box half the size of a standard sheet of paper with a beautiful emerald green ribbon tied around it from the middle-aged woman on the other side of the stall.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome, honey; I'm sure the recipient will love them!" Keith laughed nervously.

"Y-Yeah, I hope she will..."

"Go get 'er, Raikou," the stall owner winked as Keith began to make his way out of the market.

Keith soon strode through the main lobby of the Driftveil Star Hotel; more patrons were checking out of the hotel than checking in, but, somehow, there was slightly more chaos than Keith had recalled seeing – in fact, there was a Froakie on the ceiling! Keith was about to turn a corner when Naomi made her way to the lobby with Steven, Robbie and Reese next to her. Keith happily reunited with his Sawsbuck and Buizel, petting them on their heads as he greeted them.

"Steven brought your Pokémon back here, but what's going on?" Naomi asked worriedly. "They seemed upset."

"You mean nobody brought you up to speed? Xavier had an... ...no, it's not an accident; he was brutally assaulted," Keith explained resentfully.

"Oh, my gosh...! Is he okay?!"

"Nobody is."

"Pardon?"

"Xavier's still in surgery as far as I know and Alexa's even more of an emotional wreck than usual... Hell, even Ryder's not doing so good!" Naomi was shocked.

"I-I'll have a word with Harvey about it later, but...oh, gosh... If you're going to go down and see her, please give her my regards."

"I will; I'm planning to take Robbie down to Castelia City afer a shower anyway."

"I'll look after your other two Pokémon if you'd like," Naomi offered kindly.

"Are you sure? You've already done me a favour by having your Gallade bring the boys here from Troy's Daycare Centre!"

"It's no trouble at all, really," Naomi smiled.

"Thank you, that would be great!" Ava jumped off of Keith's shoulder and grabbed onto Robbie's antler as Keith waved Naomi farewell and walked over to the elevator at the end of the corridor.

Alexa sat in front of the Leavanny water fountain in Castelia Park, with Ryder sitting on one side of her and Jollie sitting on the other side of her. Both Pokémon kept a concerned eye on Alexa, who held onto her knees and stared at her feet lifelessly, feeling greatly depressed after her heated verbal fight with her father.

"...m-maybe I shouldn't have said anything..."

"I thought you said you had to before Adelina did," Ryder said carefully.

"I know..." Alexa sighed deeply. "I was damned if I didn't and damned if I did...either way, it-it was coming out today..." Ryder looked down at his own feet with depression.

"...because of me..."

"Huh?" Alexa looked over at her Lucario with confusion.

"If I'd have just kept my mind-mouth shut-"

"Ryder, don't-"

"Then Xavier wouldn't be in that Theatre place where Gabby died!" Alexa was horrified; Ryder had essentially presumed that Xavier would die solely because he was in Theatre.

"Xavier is NOT going to die!" she yelled. "T-The doctors KNOW what's wrong with him; they didn't know what was wrong with Gabby until it was too late!" Ryder hung his head even lower, feeling ashamed to have even conjured up such a presumption in the first place.

"...sorry..." Alexa looked away from Ryder, her anxiety swiftly returning to her.

"...but... ...oh, Xavier...!" Alexa buried her face in one hand as she tried not to succumb to her tears for the umpteenth time in one day; she was getting exhausted from all of the times she cried her eyes out within an hour alone! Ryder gently placed his paw on her shoulder.

"Go and see Keith."

"Huh?" Alexa faced her Lucario again and saw how meaningful he looked.

"I know you wanna sort things out with Hayden, but I don't think you're ready yet. At least let him know how it went!" Feeling even more pessimistic, Alexa looked back at her boots. "Alex..."

"I'll see him if I can't nip this in the bud...I already told you that."

"What do you want to do now?" Ryder asked. Alexa stood up and brushed some dust off of her backside before taking a deep breath, as if she instinctively knew she'd come to regret what she had in mind.

"...I'm going to talk to my Dad..." Ryder and Jollie stood up; despite mutually agreeing to support whatever decision Alexa made, they both had a bad feeling about this one.

"...lead the way."

Daniel lay on his bed staring at his ceiling. He appeared to be content, knowing that not only his parents had stopped arguing, but that his mother had also decided to stop her fight with her brothers – more importantly, he finally managed to get Peggy's discovery across to the bulk of his family, despite neglecting to mention Peggy's name. Rhonda lay next to him, her head and front paws resting on her Trainer's chest, smiling sweetly as she felt Daniel's fingers slowly and softly running up and down the back of her head. When his Xtransceiver began to emit a series of rhythmic beeps, Daniel looked at his communication device curiously; Keenan was calling him. Though slightly cranky, he accepted the incoming call; when Keenan's face appeared on the central screen, Daniel instantly noticed how shaken up his cousin looked.

"You okay?"

"Y-Yeah, I'm fine..."

"Your voice and shivering say otherwise," Daniel said quietly. Rhonda shifted herself to look at the Xtransceiver from over Daniel's shoulder. At the exact same time, Iara moved herself to look at Keenan's Xtransceiver as well; the two Eevee evolutions waved at one another. "What's up?"

"I-I, uh..." Keenan kept his voice as low as he could. "I think I know what happened to my sister..."

"Hence the anxiety," Daniel guessed. "What is it?"

"I-I think it was blackmail..." Daniel was alarmed by Keenan's assumption.

"What makes you think that?" Keenan felt heavily awkward; he had information for Daniel to follow up on, but how was he going to share this information without mentioning what he'd just heard from Alexa? Keenan decided to give some sort of answer before his pause gave Daniel more reason to grow suspicious.

"...A-Alex...told us something that-that was only brought up after A-Adelina attacked her...a-and it wasn't mentioned before then..."

"Something significant enough to warrant blackmail?"

"A-Adelina probably heard Alex and Ryder talking about it a-an threatened to tell the rest of us," Keenan explained timidly.

"But Adelina's-...no, wait; we've already established that she wants to take the whole family down," Daniel muttered to himself.

"B-But that got me thinking; i-if that's what happened, what if she'll do it again?" The alarm bells in Daniel's head rang louder; Keenan's hypothesis seemed realistic to him, which was disturbing in itself.

"...no...that wouldn't make any sense!" Daniel exclaimed as he sat up, nearly knocking Rhonda off of his shoulder in the process. "How would she-"

"M-Maybe she has a scout!" Keenan said suddenly. "T-This might be irrelevant, but b-before our battle in White Forest, I saw a Beautifly just before Adelina showed up!" Daniel's heart began to race as the revelations became even more startling.

"...that...yes, of course! That would make sense! I mean, Troy was attacked by a Jellicent in his Daycare Centre not too long ago, but he didn't HAVE any Jellicent in the Daycare at the time – meanwhile, Adelina just HAPPENS to have one! And, as far as I can tell, nobody told her about Troy's trauma!"

"See!? If-if she knew that, she could just as easily find out about yours!" Keenan's words touched a raw nerve for Daniel; he stared at the wall in front of him with a look on his face that could only have come from facing fear itself.

"...I-I need to see the girls."

"Go!" With Keenan's encouragement, Daniel hung up his Xtransceiver and bolted from the bed hastily, grabbing the idle moss green belt bag from the door handle on his way out of the room, slamming the bedroom door behind him – Rhonda was lucky her tail made it over the threshold in time!

Keenan sighed as he lowered his arm and stood himself up off of the floor, using the door behind him for support. He took a deep breath as he slowly opened the door; as soon as he walked over the threshold, Hayden and Lily looked up at him from the sofa on the far side of the room; Hayden still looked emotionally hurt, but Lily was relieved to see Keenan had calmed down at least somewhat since he fled into that bedroom.

"Hey, kiddo," Hayden said glumly.

"How do you feel, sweetie?" Lily asked with concern. Keenan felt awkward again and it was worrying Iara.

"I...I-I dunno yet..."

"Can't say I blame you..."

"Hayden-"

"I'm sorry! But...it's...it's just..." Hayden sighed as he ran his fingers through his fringe. "It's been one heck of a morning... The meeting went well, but...everything went downhill after that..."

"...w-why did you have to drive Alex away, Dad...?!" Keenan asked tearfully. "S-She was really, really scared of what she told us...l-like it happened to her an hour ago...! ...w-why did you drive her away...?!" Hayden kept his eye contact on the carpet beneath his feet; part of him felt ashamed that he pushed his daughter away, but he was mostly still hurting from the harsh truth he heard from her. Hayden's lack of answer for his son worried Lily further.

"Hayden-"

The room door suddenly, yet gradually, opened; Hayden, Lily and Keenan watched as Alexa shyly made her way inside the room with her Lucario and Buneary. Alexa was purposely avoiding eye contact with her father, who, in turn, looked away from her, very slightly in disgust, which was a feeling that he never imagined to carry for his own daughter. Lily, however, was relieved to see Alexa was all right, all things considered, and walked over to her, giving her a loving cuddle that, once again, Alexa didn't feel like returning; Keenan could tell she didn't really want to be in Hayden's presence.

"Alexa! Oh, are you all right, honey?" Lily was confused and concerned when Alexa ever so gently broke free from her embrace and looked over at Hayden; even though his eyes weren't on her, just looking at him made Alexa feel tense.

"...D-Dad...?" Hayden kept quiet; instead, he listened intently to what Alexa had to say for herself. "I-I-I... ...I-I know that w-what I said hurt you...a-and I'm sorry..." Hayden didn't appear to show any regard for Alexa's apology, which annoyed Lily.

"Oh, for Arceus' sake, Hayden, say something!" Alexa began to panic; noticing this, Ryder instantly stepped forward and practically used himself as a shield, ready to protect her from Hayden if he needed to.

"N-N-No, h-he doesn't-"

"What do you want me to say, Alexa?" Hayden asked crabbily. An overpowering sense of dread crushed Alexa's spirit as Hayden stood up and walked over to her. Ryder held his arms out and kept his violent gaze on Hayden. "What is it you want? To be forgiven for your recklessness?" he asked as he stood in front of his daughter, arms folded and staring down at her sternly. Alexa recoiled as she tried her very hardest not to look away from her father's eyes.

"...no..." she said in a mousy little voice.

"Then what is it that you DO want?"

"Back off," Lily cautioned firmly. But Hayden waited almost impatiently for Alexa's response. Alexa held onto her arms for a vain attempt to calm herself down.

"...I'm sorry...t-that I hurt you-"

"Hurt me? That is the BIGGEST understatement you have EVER made!" Alexa looked up at her father in horror; he wasn't angry as she initially thought he was – on the contrary, she saw a crystal clear look of devastation in his eyes...and it made her feel even worse about her confession. "I-I mean...why NOW?! Y-Your Aunt's dealing with a friendship issue and you're trying to find out if y-your relationship with Keith can be salvaged! ...w-why would you tell me – tell US – a-about this trauma now?!"

"B-Because Adelina threatened to tell you herself!" Alexa almost screamed her response, her father's despair starting to get the better of her. However, the revelation she'd just released sent shock waves through Lily and Keenan – Keenan almost looked spooked.

"...thought so..." he whispered to himself. Iara gulped silently; the hypothesis Keenan had shared with Daniel turned out to be true after all!

"W-What...?!"

"T-That's how s-she g-got me t-to battle her!" Alexa explained sorrowfully as the memories of her forced battle and the blackmail in question began flooding her mind, further adding to her anxiety. "S-She heard us t-talking a-about it a-and...s-she said she'd tell you herself i-if I d-didn't keep out of h-her affairs...! ...e-even though I was t-trying to anyway, Dad, y-you have to believe me...!" Hayden shook his head, but not because he didn't believe that Alexa wasn't avoiding an issue that, in the grand scheme of things, had no relevance to her.

"B-But I don't understand...w-why were you e-even talking about it in the first place...?!" Ryder relaxed his stance; he lowered his arms and looked up at Hayden with a softer demeanour.

"That's my fault," he confessed. Alexa looked down at Ryder in shock.

"Ryder, n-no-"

"I brought it up," Ryder said abruptly.

"What for?" Hayden asked shakily.

Keith stood near his hotel bed as he pulled his navy blue T-shirt over his grey long-sleeved shirt; he felt relaxed and cleaner as he picked up the gift box from his duvet and placed it on the bedside table, near his lamp, just before he left the room entirely.

He eventually made his way out of the hotel, with Robbie as his only Pokémon companion. Once the pair were through the hotel doors and actually on the streets of Driftveil City, Robbie crouched down to allow Keith to climb onto his back. With Keith safely on his back, the Sawsbuck began his gallop to Castelia City.

Adelina and Huey watched over the Striaton Academy playing field from the seclusion of the nearby woodlands, watching as, very gradually, the students were called back into the school to resume their learning. The pair kept an eye on Daphne and Peggy in particular; they were standing near the only tree in the playing field, which, as Adelina understood, was where Daphne and Daniel loved to reside during playtime. Daphne appeared to be giving Peggy some reassuring words rather than listening to her form's number being called by a teacher; Peggy soon cheered up and cuddled the equally euphoric Swablu in her arms. However, Adelina began to snigger, much to the confusion of her Delcatty.

"Hello, Danny." Exactly as expected, Daniel walked out of the shadows and confronted Adelina from behind. Rhonda stood firmly next to her Trainer, keeping her eyes locked on the smirking cat Pokémon next to the antagonistic woman. Adelina turned around to face the suspended twin; Daniel glared daggers at her, which didn't appear to faze her in the slightest. "May I help you?" Daniel was in no mood for trivialities; instead, he told her very simply, yet very fiercely...

"You will NOT hurt my sisters."

 _To be continued..._


	34. Chapter 34

**Chapter Thirty Four – Confrontations pt 2**

Adelina chuckled as she looked down at her beloved Delcatty before gently stroking the top of his head.

"Blunt as always."

"I mean it; you stay away from them," Daniel said threateningly. Adelina laughed again, annoying Daniel further, albeit unintentionally.

"You are such a sweetheart! But answer me this; what's the alternative?" she asked as she faced Daniel directly again. "You're telling me not to hurt your sisters, but what's the consequence if I do? Unless you have something to back up your threat-"

"I know it was you." Adelina lost her smug smile as she eyed the boy cautiously. Huey began to feel nervous.

"What are you talking about?"

"You attacked Alexa." Adelina was alarmed; how did he know about that confrontation? "Not only that, you attempted to blackmail her and you had the deceit to critically injure one of her Pokémon and destroy his Poké Ball, thereby technically making him a wild Pokémon! Am I right?"

"I don't know what you mean," Adelina said calmly. "What would I be doing with her anyway? She isn't my problem-"

"If she knew something you didn't want her to know, whether or not she's your problem is irrelevant if you want her to remain silent," Daniel said abruptly. "So, you found some dirt on her and threatened to tell the rest of us about it if she didn't keep quiet – not that you gave her the chance to decide where she stands on that negotiation; you hospitalised her Zoroark in the exact same confrontation!" Adelina was frustrated.

"...I think you've been reading too many crime novels..."

"Do you have a Jellicent, Adelina?" Huey was alarmed.

"A Jellicent?"

"One attacked my eldest cousin's Daycare Centre the other day. The funny thing is...nobody dropped off a Jellicent recently, and they don't live on Route 3."

"And what does that have to do with me?"

"How did you know Troy was afraid of Jellicent?" Daniel asked sceptically. Adelina lost her patience. "Did you find out through a scout of some kind? It wouldn't happen to be your Beautifly now, would it?"

"I don't believe this...how many bright sparks ARE there in your family tree?"

"So I'm right?"

"Unfortunately for you, yes." Daniel was on amber alert.

"Unfortunately?"

"Because, now, I'll have to do what I've done to Alexa. You were right; she, too, called me out on my activities...I had to silence her, but I hear she let her secret out anyway," Adelina smirked. Daniel was startled until he remembered his earlier accusation regarding Adelina's possession of a Pokémon acting as a scout.

"So you sent Alexa to Hell just because you didn't want your little games to end?! Screw everyone else as long as you're still afloat?! You don't care who you traumatise, do you?!"

"Oh, you'd know all about trauma, don't you, Two-Tone?" Adelina asked smugly. Daniel was horrified; Keenan's speculation was right on the money!

"...h-how did you-"

"Alas, though, sweetheart, I'm seriously going to have to ask for your silence now," Adelina said quickly as she took out a Poké Ball and opened it, releasing an uppity-looking Vileplume with large white spots on the heart-shaped flower petals on her head amidst a shower of falling pink flower petals. "Hyacinth, honey...Stun Spore..." Hyacinth lowered her head in preparation to carry out her assault, but Rhonda charged towards her.

From the playing fields, Daphne spotted Adelina through the corner of her eye, prompting Peggy to look in the same direction. Panicky, especially when they spotted Rhonda leaping at something in front of Adelina, Daphne and Peggy ran away from the school – and the other students walking inside the building - and rushed over to the commotion, Daphne picking out a Poké Ball from her blazer pocket.

"DANIEL!"

Ryder felt anxious as Hayden paced around a little, keeping his eyes away from the Lucario and his daughter, who kept her gaze away from him as well as the highly worried Lily and the rattled Keenan, who looked between Hayden and Alexa as Hayden tried and failed to contain his additional anger and devastation.

"Well, this just gets better and better, doesn't it!?" Hayden said sarcastically. He looked over at Alexa; though no eye contact was established, Alexa could almost feel Hayden's eyes piercing her spirit and winced, almost in pain. "What other secrets have you been keeping from me, huh?! Any gambling I should know about?!"

"Stop it, Hayden!" Lily snapped. "You know Alexa doesn't have a Coin Case!" Hayden scoffed.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Lily, for being offended about being the LAST person to know about my daughter's encounter with a criminal group!" Alexa finally faced her father, looking more shell-shocked than before.

"I-I told you, I-I didn't-"

"Did you even INTEND to say ANYTHING to us about this?!" Hayden interrogated, his harsh glare returning to Alexa. Intimidated, Alexa held her tongue, causing Hayden to huff. "That's a no then."

"It's complicated!" Alexa exclaimed defensively. "I-I was going to tell you when I got home, but Cynthia-"

"Don't give me that, Alexa," Hayden scolded abruptly. "You must have had PLENTY of time to tell us between the aftermath of the incident itself and your battle against Cynthia!"

"Hayden, that's enough!"

"N-No, h-he's right," Alexa said submissively. Ryder and Jollie looked up at her worriedly; it was almost as if she'd given up trying to argue her case – like she'd given up trying to stand up for herself! "...I-I had two weeks between the two incidents..." Hayden felt even angrier.

"Then why didn't you say anything between those two weeks?!"

"HAYDEN!" Lily's protest fell on deaf ears; Hayden was too intent on hearing Alexa's response to his harshly delivered question, no matter how long it took her to answer him.

"...I-I was scared... ...a-and I...I-I didn't want to hurt you." Hayden was horrified in addition to being furious and hurt.

"Y-You mean to tell me...that you've kept all of this from us...to SPARE OUR FEELINGS!?" Alexa felt the anger in Hayden's voice and felt indescribably rotten; for the first time since she let the truth slip, her tears fell from her eyes in front of her family – Ryder felt one landing on his tail. "...I-I just..." Hayden sighed as he began to pace around again, trying to comprehend Alexa's motive to keep her trauma away from him. "...I-I don't believe you right now, Alexa... Why is it that your good intentions make things worse!?" In that instant, Alexa's heart may as well have shattered into oblivion; what little sense of self-worth Alexa had left was completely quashed by the very last person she'd expect to break her entirely. But the worst part for her was...she felt he was right; she'd only intended to help a man she'd respected out of a simple mugging incident, yet she ended up being 'drafted' to defeat the organisation the muggers were a part of! And, she thought, that if her father was right about that, what other good intentions did she have that ended up making things worse?! Lily, however, glared spitefully at her husband.

"That was crossing the line, Hayden!"

"And Alexa hadn't done the same already?!" Hayden asked angrily.

"Y-You can't tell me I'm only good for getting into trouble-oop!" Realising what she was about to say, Alexa slapped both hands over her mouth in horror. However, everyone heard her and drew their attention to her.

"Did someone tell you that, sweetie?" Lily asked gently. Alexa looked away from her; she really, really, really didn't want to say anything.

"Who told you that?!" Hayden asked demandingly. Jollie walked up to Alexa and hugged her right boot comfortingly, even though Alexa hardly felt a thing. Keenan watched worriedly as Alexa was devastatingly close to letting her tears get the better of her.

"...K-Keith..."

"KEITH said that?!" Keenan asked in horror; he knew that Alexa and Keith had disputes before, but he never knew Keith was so capable of uttering such hurtful words to her! Alexa nodded, though doing so only made more tears fall down her face; her eyes began to feel sore.

"What else did he say?" Lily asked softly as she made her way over to the shaken up Alexa. Alexa shook her head; she didn't want to say anything further – things were already getting worse without Keith having been brought into the picture.

"ALEXA!" Hayden roared furiously. Alexa's fear intensified and even Ryder suffered from a jump scare.

"...t-that... ...t-that I-I have a kn-knack for...m-making thing difficult for everyone...!" Alexa replied timidly. Keenan noticed that Alexa's answer failed to give Hayden a proper reaction; it was almost like it didn't surprise him.

"That-... W-Well-..." Unable to think of anything to say in response, Hayden sighed as he turned away from Alexa.

"...y-you agree with him, don't you...?" Alexa asked with dread. Lily and Keenan looked over at Hayden with alarm.

"Is that true, Hayden!?" Lily asked desperately. Hayden, however, gave no response – or even any acknowledgement to her question.

"...Dad...?" Now it was Keenan's turn to feel anxious. Hayden sighed again.

"I need some air," he said bluntly as he made his way out of the hotel room, very nearly brushing passed Alexa on his way out. As soon as the door closed behind Hayden, Alexa began to sob as her despair finally caught up to her and collapsed onto her knees. Ryder spun around and held onto her securely for comfort before Lily had a chance to move one step closer to her. Despite being in the arms of her doggedly loyal Lucario, Alexa felt no comfort in his embrace, feeling only a sense of isolation. Seeing Alexa in such a vulnerable state crushed Keenan in particular; he stood there looking at Ryder's vain attempt to comfort Alexa as he, too, felt an overwhelming sense of sorrow trying to dominate him – tears fell from his eyes at long last.

Rhonda struggled to remain on her feet as the yellow spores spoiling her ebony black fur coat heavily restricted her movements. However, Hyacinth seemed to be suffering from the same ailment Rhonda was, but the Vileplume was swiftly defeated by the orange aura that briefly enveloped her, courtesy of the highly protective Espeon standing firmly in front of his twin sister. Daphne and Peggy had managed to climb over the fence and made their way over to Daneil as they confronted Adelina alongside him.

"Good going, Roland!"

"Espeon!" Roland snarled angrily towards Adelina.

"Umbreon...!" Rhonda winced from the pain of her paralysis. Daniel crouched down and cuddled her gently.

"Thanks, girl..." Rhonda lovingly licked Daniel's cheek just before she was recalled to the safety of her Poké Ball.

"Is Rhonda going to be okay?" Peggy asked worriedly.

"Blu, Blu..."

"Stun Spore washes off, don't worry, darling," Adelina said, feigning her kindness. "Though it would be hard to wash off of an untrimmed Furfrou..."

"Daniel, what were you thinking, confronting Adelina like that?!" Daphne asked as Daniel stood up properly.

"I was...confirming some suspicions I've been having...that's all," Daniel said carefully.

"So she does want to break the whole family?" Peggy asked innocently. Adelina and Huey were gravely alarmed.

"What did you just say?!" Daniel stepped in front of the confused child protectively as he glared at the angry Adelina.

"Back off!" he shouted furiously. Daphne looked between Adelina and Daniel, looking incredibly lost.

"What's even going on?"

"I'll tell you what's going on," Adelina said, looking incredibly infuriated. "Two-Tone accused me of-"

"Two-Tone? How did you know to call my brother that?" Daphne asked suspiciously. Adelina recoiled; she effectively gave herself away – again.

"I think I figured her out, Daphne. But I'm not the first to have done so...am I, Adelina?" Adelina scowled viciously at the younger twin.

"Then who was first?"

"Alexa," Daniel replied simply.

"Or so I thought," Adelina said through her teeth. Daphne and Daniel were perplexed.

"What are you-" Before Daphne could inquire, Adelina released her Gothitelle and Jellicent from their Poké Balls, respectively with a veil of sparkles and a ring of pink bubbles surrounding them.

"Francesca, Dolores, get the little one!" Adelina commanded. Peggy and Piper were horrified as the Gothitelle and Jellicent lunged towards her, but Daphne and Daniel became protective as they each took a green and black Poké Ball from their blazer pocket and belt bag respectively.

"Marco!"

"Polo!"

The two Poké Balls opened at the exact same moment, releasing the Dusknoir and Banette from inside with a stream of midnight black energy. The two Ghost Pokémon intercepted Adelina's Pokémon with the same sphere of deep purple energy knocking them in their faces. Daniel looked back at Peggy.

"Peggy, get out of here; Marco and Polo will protect you!"

"B-But...where do I go?" Peggy asked fearfully. Daniel crouched next to her and whispered his reply in her ear, preventing Adelina from hearing him.

"Now, go!" Daniel insisted. Peggy nodded nervously and began to flee.

"Marco, Polo, stay with her!" Daphne yelled.

"Dusknoir!"

"Banette!"

Marco and Polonius followed Peggy closely as she fled through the woodlands. Dolores and Francesca were about to pursue the two Ghosts, but were intercepted again, this time by a very disgruntled Aromatisse and Slurpuff. From the sidelines, Roland snarled violently at Adelina and Huey.

"You want to get to OUR little sister, you'll need to get through US first!" Daphne yelled nastily. Adelina was still frustrated, but she cracked a little smirk.

"I don't have to."

"So, which one?" Harvey asked as he, Hailey and Colin walked down one of Castelia's many streets. "Milotic tail or Talonflame bust?"

"Milotic tail," Colin answered, pushing his glasses further up his nose. "I need my arms for my illustrations."

"Same as Colin; it just looks more appealing!" Hailey laughed. "What about you, Harvey?"

"Does anyone think of an answer to their own hypotheticals?" Harvey chuckled. Colin looked ahead of him; he saw Castelite, but it wasn't the building itself that concerned him. "Though, if I had to this one time-"

"Uh, guys?" Hailey and Harvey looked over at Colin in confusion until they looked at what he was pointing to; they then spotted Hayden leaning against the wall of Castelite, standing fairly far away from the hotel's entrance. Confused and worried, Colin, Harvey and Hailey ran towards him, eventually noticing the stress written all over Hayden's face.

"Hayden?" Hayden almost jumped as he looked up at his older brother.

"Harvey!" He then spotted Hailey and Colin standing next to Harvey. "Hailey, Colin! W-What are you doing here?"

"We, uh, came to see you," Hailey said nervously. "I wanted to apologise for my behaviour..."

"Me, too," Harvey admitted. "But then we saw you out here and...what's wrong, bro?" Hayden looked away from his siblings and brother-in-law.

"It...it's nothing...you have enough on your plates as it is...all of you..." Hailey walked closer to Hayden; his look of anguish became clearer to her.

"Is it something we can help you with?" she asked sweetly. Hayden lifted his head and looked up at the cloudy sky above him; now his look of torment was clear to Harvey and Colin.

"No...no, it isn't..."

"Oh, crap...you told Alexa about my proposal, didn't you?" Harvey asked anxiously. Colin noticed Hayden clenching the sleeves of his suit jacket at the very mention of Alexa's name.

"No, I didn't... ...shit...I still need to discuss that with her...!"

"But whatever it is that's stressing you out, it involves her, doesn't it?" Colin asked. Hayden sighed as he looked at the ground again.

"Hayden? Are you sure we can't help you?" Hailey asked with concern.

"I'm quite sure," Hayden sighed.

From further down the street, Keith and Robbie made their way over to Castelite, but they spotted Hayden speaking with Harvey, Hailey and Colin. Keith began to feel uneasy as he saw how stressed Hayden looked and approached cautiously.

"Hayden? What's wrong?" Keith asked carefully. All four of the adults looked over at Keith, but only Hayden saw red when they saw the boy.

"You KNOW what's wrong with me!" Hayden roared as, before anyone had a chance to react, he darted towards Keith, grabbed him by his shirt and pressed him against the wall of Castelite; the sudden act heavily shocked Colin, Harvey and Hailey, but Keith almost looked frightened beyond anything he'd ever felt before – like he was staring at his worst nightmare.

"Hayden!" Hailey cried.

"I know how you've demolished my daughter's self-esteem!" Hayden yelled furiously. "That's bad enough without knowing that you knew about Team Galactic all this time," he added in a low and sinister whisper, preventing Hailey, Harvey and Colin from hearing him. Keith began to hyperventilate.

"I-I-I can-"

"DON'T even bother; it's not YOUR place to explain! Not THAT, anyway..."

"Hayden, let him go!" Harvey exclaimed as he and Colin began trying to pry Hayden away from Keith – but Hayden was not going to yield. Having heard the commotion from the hotel room, Lily and Alexa, through Cheryl's Teleport technique, suddenly appeared outside the hotel building; Alexa immediately spotted Keith locked inside Hayden's violent glare and was completely horrified. Lily, however, was furious.

"I want to know what possessed you to DESTROY my daughter!"

"HAYDEN!" Lily shouted savagely as she stepped in between Hayden and Keith and shoved the angry parent away. During the commotion, Keith fled down the street, looking immensely traumatised. Robbie followed him, looking very panicky. Alexa began to chase after him.

"KEITH!" she called. However, Lily caught her and held her in a gentle embrace, despite Alexa wanting to see to Keith's well-being after such a frightening encounter with her pissed off father.

"Leave him be, baby," Lily said sweetly before facing Hayden meanly. "What was that all about?!"

"You KNOW what that was about, Lily!" Hayden roared viciously. Seeing Hayden and Lily practically at each other's throats worried Hailey, Harvey and Colin greatly.

"That's no reason to give Keith such a harsh grilling!"

"Isn't it, though?! You heard what he said to Alexa!"

"And I heard what you said to HIM! You accuse him of destroying our daughter when that's exactly what you've just done – you were being a hypocrite!" Hayden was horrified; he committed the exact same crime he had just accused Keith of committing. He looked over at the distraught girl in Lily's arms; knowing that he was responsible for the distress she was feeling made him feel rotten.

"Guys, guys...why don't we take this inside?" Colin negotiated calmly. "We came here to talk to you anyway; we might as well do it somewhere nobody else can hear us."

"Thank Arceus nobody else is on our floor," Lily said quietly. Alexa kept her focus on the street Keith ran down.

"I-I-I need to see if he's okay-"

"No, baby, not right now," Lily said delicately. Hearing how shaky and tearful Alexa's voice was made Hayden regret his behaviour even further. "Cheryl, can you take us all back to the room, please?"

"Gardevoir," Cheryl nodded compliantly as she vanished, taking Lily, Alexa, Hayden, Harvey, Hailey and Colin with her.

Peggy raced Polonius and Marco out of the woodlands as they made their way onto Route 3. Perri, who was leaning against the fence overlooking the entirety of the route, spotted the lone child.

"ZOR!" she called out to Troy, who was pre-occupied with the pregnant Purugly. Troy spotted Peggy and hurried over to her with Perri before she fled down the path leading to Nacrene City.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, what's the matter, Pegs?" he asked quickly.

"Noir," Marco said impatiently. Troy and Perri finally noticed Marco and Polonius on either side of Peggy.

"Marco? Polo?" Troy became a little apprehensive. "Peggy, what's going on?"

"I-It was Adelina...!" Peggy said tearfully. "S-She wanted to hurt me...!"

"Say no more," Troy said boldly. "Marco, Polo, you carry on with whatever you're doing."

"Dusk!"

"Bane!" Marco and Polonius both saluted the Breeder. Troy stood up and looked over at Perri.

"Perri, you're in charge of the Daycare while I-"

"NINE!" Michael called. Troy and Peggy looked towards the paddock; to their horror, some of the Pokémon inside, including Brent and Lucy, were attacking the other Pokémon! Perri immediately rushed back into the paddock to help her husband against the unprovoked fury of Nate, using her shadowy claws to repel the Reuniclus.

"What's going on?!" Troy asked in confusion. Nobody seemed to notice Marco and Polonius's eyes growing pale and lifeless. "Why is everyone-" Peggy screamed as she jumped backwards, attracting Troy's attention; Marco and Polonius had just tried to attack Peggy and Piper with the same string of concentrated electrical energy! Troy was furious, but he ran passed the two Ghost types and stepped in front of the petrified Peggy protectively, taking out two Poké Balls from his pockets.

"T-Troy...! W-Why are they attacking me...?!"

"That's a very good question, Pegs," Troy said angrily. "Mac, Lukie, get out here!" he yelled as he opened the two Poké Balls. Lukie appeared from one of them, but a large and slightly slender Emboar with green eyes emerged next to the dopey-looking Watchog. Mac glared at the opposing duo, whereas Lukie looked virtually as clueless as ever, with tongue hanging out of his mouth.

"T-Troy...?"

"It's okay, Peggy...nothing will hurt you on my watch," Troy vowed sincerely. "Mac, Lukie! I don't care if they ARE Daniel and Daphne's Pokémon; they turned on Peggy, so treat them as the enemy, got it!?"

"Wat!" Lukie nodded.

"BOAR!" Mac grunted, banging his giant fists together eagerly. Troy glared at the two soulless Ghost Pokémon, perplexed as to how and why they turned on Peggy without prior provocation.

 _To be continued..._


	35. Chapter 35

**Chapter Thirty Five – Confrontations pt 3**

Tucker and Veronica collapsed on the grass in defeat, their bodies, respectively, veiled in a blood red and golden yellow aura for a fleeting moment. Adelina smiled proudly as Daphne and Daniel begrudgingly recalled their fainted Fairy type Pokémon back into their Poké Balls.

"Y'know, you two make a very interesting challenge," she praised, noticing how her Jellicent and Gothitelle were beginning to pant. "You've certainly ran laps around my darling girls; impressive!"

"Spare us the false compliments, Adelina, we know you're completely untrustworthy at this point!" Daniel said spitefully. "What reasons of vanity could you possibly have to turn your back on someone who believed you to be their friend?!"

"Vanity? What makes you think I'm doing any of this out of pure entertainment value?" Adelina asked, losing her smile...for a millisecond. "That being said...trying to break Alexa was amusing until she tried to surrender."

"She what?"

"Can't say I blame her," Daniel said in Alexa's defence. "She must have made it perfectly clear that she has NOTHING to do with you...right?"

"So she claimed...and I'm not saying she's not an honest girl, but, seriously, who's to say that she was being dishonest in the moment?" Adelina asked smugly.

"The fact that she sucks at lying," Daniel said bluntly. "I may not see her that often – by my own choice – but I know that much!"

"Besides, she has her own problems; why would she juggle dead wood at the same time?" Daphne asked rudely. Adelina scoffed arrogantly and glared angrily at the twins.

"Dead wood?! I am NOT going to let you get away with that, sweetheart!" Daphne and Daniel took out another Poké Ball each.

"Like you wouldn't let Alexa get away with her CRITICALLY INJURED Pokémon!?" Daniel questioned interrogatively.

"It's not MY fault she wasn't sufficiently prepared; she had NO supplies whatsoever!"

"A Hyper Potion can't cure a haematoma!" Daniel argued back. "Ty, you're up!" he yelled as he opened his Poké Ball.

"C'mon out, Al!" Daphne exclaimed as she opened hers. The two released streams of light landed on the grass and formed into a Hitmonlee with black fingerless gloves on his hands and a Hitmonchan with a black Expert Belt around his waist.

"More parallels? Why do I get the feeling that you'll end up becoming the next Tate and Liza?" Adelina asked, sounding completely disgruntled at the very thought.

"How is that any of your business?!" Daphne snapped.

"Well, I don't know if I'd be so willing to battle anyone with a nickname like Two-Tone," Adelina said insultingly. "Especially if they tried to look the part." Daniel and Daphne were mortified.

"...h-how did you-"

Before Daphne could inquire further, everyone heard a loud boom coming from somewhere just outside Striaton City. Daniel and Daphne looked at the towering smoke and panicked.

"Is the Daycare under attack AGAIN?!" Daniel complained.

"If it is, we have an excuse to drop the dead wood!" Daphne said mockingly.

"Let's go!" Daniel said keenly, immediately racing into the woodlands with his twin sister, Ty and Al following without hesitation. Dolores and Francesca looked back at Adelina worriedly, while Huey seemed to cower where he stood as he, and his comrades, saw how furious Adelina looked.

"I am NOT dead wood...but..." Adelina looked up at what was left of the towering pillar of smoke. "Better make sure things are okay..."

The hotel room's atmosphere felt tense; Alexa was walking aimlessly around the room with Ryder trying to stop her from doing so, Lily and Hailey sat on the sofa on either side of a rather ashamed Hayden while Colin and Harvey were the only adults standing up, looking between Hayden and Alexa. Alexa appeared to be between stress and dismay over what she'd just witnessed at the hotel's front entrance.

"Look, I know things are running high right now, but we can't let Adelina-"

"This hasn't got anything to do with her, Harvey," Lily said gently.

"It's my fault," Alexa said crabbily.

"Nobody's saying that, sweetheart," Lily said quickly. "But-"

"But I'm why Dad's been silent since we got back here," Alexa presumed. Hayden avoided looking at his daughter.

"That's on him, not you," Colin said calmly. "But, okay, if the problem isn't Adelina, then what is?"

"Do we really have to go through this?" Ryder asked protectively.

"I'm just trying to understand the bad blood here."

"If it's about what I said about you, I'm sorry," Harvey said seriously.

"What did you say about me?" Alexa asked in puzzlement.

"I essentially called BS about you battling Adelina. I'm sorry I came to that conclusion." Alexa huffed; she didn't seem to care at this point. "How much stress are you under anyway? You're close to looking paranoid."

"I saw my Dad traumatising my boyfriend; how much stress do you think that warrants?" Alexa asked in a low frustrated mumble. "...but, no...it's not that..."

"Just...just a bit of a rift between her and her father," Lily said quietly.

"A bit?!" Ryder growled. "He ripped her heart out!"

"Pack it in, Ryder, this won't help," Colin advised. Confused, Harvey looked over at Hayden.

"Are you SURE this isn't about my proposal?" Alexa looked at her uncle in bewilderment.

"Wait, what proposal?" she asked.

"Harvey, don't-"

"It's about time it came out anyway; Hayden even said he needed to run it by Alexa just now!" Harvey said to Hailey.

"What proposal!?" Alexa asked impatiently.

"Harvey, now's not-"

"No! If it concerns me, I have the right to know!" Alexa snapped furiously. Harvey sighed.

"After your battle against the twins...I had this idea that you could travel again," he explained carefully. Alexa's eyes widened, but not with delight. "Not necessarily for another eight gym badges and another Pokémon League placement; you have enough of those as it is! U-Unless you want to, in which, by all means, go for that, but...I mostly thought of the idea so you could get your self-esteem back." Alexa stared at her tallest uncle in complete silence, which concerned everyone until she suddenly scoffed.

"I-I'm sorry; is this for real right now?!" The adults and witnessing Pokémon were surprised to see Alexa completely livid.

"Lexie-"

"No, Mum! Dad criticised me for keeping something from him when he – and possibly the rest of you as well – was tucking THIS in his pockets all this time!"

"But we haven't-" Alexa suddenly stared at Harvey nastily.

"Found the time to tell me?! How about the day the idea first popped into your head!? Or, like, at ANY point BEFORE the Contest?!" Colin stepped forward.

"Alexa, try to stay-"

"I am BEYOND the point of trying to calm myself down!" Alexa screamed angrily. Hayden was listening to Alexa's fury with a look of horror on his face; to him, it felt like he was experiencing a sense of deja vu. "My Zoroark could die at ANY moment within the next few hours and ALL because I was ambushed by a woman whom I, personally, had no direct quarrel with and tried to use a private subject matter against me! Moreover, I try to do the right thing and share this subject matter with my parents before they heard it from HER, but I ended up making things EVEN WORSE!" Lily suddenly stood up and confronted Alexa.

"That's not true!"

"Isn't it, though?!" Alexa glared daggers at Hayden. "HE'S inclined to disagree – HE EVEN SAID SO HIMSELF!"

"Sweetheart-"

"Look, Chick, this is why I suggested the idea in the first place," Harvey said gently as he tried to place his hands down on Alexa's shoulders; to his shock, she backed away before his palms touched her shoulders.

"Then WHY did you have to wait until Xavier wound up in SURGERY to bring it to MY attention?!" she asked, almost tearfully. None of the adults could find an answer to Alexa's query and averted eye contact from her sheepishly. Alexa scoffed again. "Today must be a very fine day for hypocrisy."

"Alexa!" Hailey tried to step forward and confront her niece.

"No, she's right," Hayden said quietly. Alexa quickly turned around and stormed into her bedroom, very nearly slamming the door in Keenan's face as she entered. Concerned, Lily hurriedly followed Alexa into the bedroom just in time to see her pouring her backpack's contents all over her bed; an assortment of spray bottles, water bottles and Seal pouches poured onto her duvet.

"Alexa, what are you doing?" Lily asked timidly.

"Making sure I don't make the same mistake again," Alexa said grumpily as she took off the belt bag from around her waist and poured its contents onto the bed; her wallet landed on the duvet along with the Poké Balls belonging to Phoenix, Ryder, Jollie, Purukin and Chutney.

"I-I don't unders-"

"You don't have to," Alexa muttered quietly as she returned her wallet and Ryder, Jollie and Phoenix's Poké Balls to her belt bag. Keenan walked over to her as she tossed a few of her spray bottles into the belt bag.

"Alex...?" Alexa ignored her brother, though without really meaning to, as she closed up her packed belt back, returned it to its usual place around her waist and stormed out of the room. Keenan and Iara joined Lily in her pursuit of her angry daughter.

"Where are you going?!" she asked in shock.

"Checking the damage Keith just suffered from," Alexa replied viciously.

"Alexa, you can't run away from this!" Lily said persuasively as she tried to stop Alexa from reaching the hotel room door. Alexa turned back quickly and faced her worried mother in frustration.

"I'm not! I'm running from HIM!" she exclaimed, pointing at Hayden. Hayden in particular was mortified by Alexa's response; he felt hurt. "Figuratively speaking, mind you." With that, Alexa turned around and walked through the door, Ryder and Jollie racing towards her.

"Alexa!" Lily tried to stop her again, but Alexa slammed the door behind her, Ryder and Jollie. Hailey walked over to Lily and held onto her to settle her nerves while Harvey did the same for Hayden. Keenan was unsure of what to do, so he returned to his room with Iara, closing the door behind them gently.

"I swear...she is so much like her father it's frightening," Colin said quietly.

The smokescreen around Troy and Peggy cleared; Marco and Polonius were severely bruised and beaten, but were far from tired. Mac and Lukie, however, looked equally as battered and were bleeding from various lacerations all over their bodies, but were panting very heavily; they were losing to the two Ghost Pokémon. Troy looked towards the ongoing chaos in his paddock; Michael was valiantly battling against a mindless Lucy with some backup from a Dedenne, while Perri, much to Troy's relief, was prioritizing the protection of the pregnant Purugly, shielding her from Brent's blind one-armed wrath. The Purugly constantly tried to fight Brent with Perri, but Perri continued to ensure that Purugly did not move an inch off of the ground. Troy looked back at the halted battle in front of him, biting his lip in frustration.

"...w-what are we going to do...?"

"Blu, Blu...!" Troy took out another Poké Ball from his pocket.

"Keep going until I've exhausted all of my options," he replied sternly. "I have no idea what's going on, but I'm going to end it... Zane, I need your help!" Troy called as he unleashed his Archeops from his Poké Ball. However, before any further instruction could be given, Troy and Peggy saw Zane's eyes turning cloudy and pale before the Archeops roared violently. The sudden turn horrified Peggy and Troy in particular.

"What-"

"Zane, what's wrong!?" Zane roared as he charged towards Peggy; Troy tried to intercept his Archeops, but the First Bird Pokémon slammed his skull into Troy's shoulder and shoved him out of his way, allowing him to resume his assault on the petrified little girl holding her Swablu for dear life. Troy recovered from his assault, though with a very large, tender and prominent bruise on his shoulder, and watched as Zane bore his teeth to Piper.

"Troy!"

"Peggy, run!" Troy called. Zane lowered his head, intent on biting into the frightened Swablu, but a spiral of concentrated air crashed into the Archeops' shoulder, knocking him backwards. Al zoomed passed the confused child with his right boxing glove enveloped in a pale blue aura, slamming the glowing glove straight onto Zane's jaw, defeating the Archeops in one blow.

"Peggy!" Peggy and Troy looked back and smiled joyfully as Daniel and Daphne ran over to them.

"Daniel! Daphne!" While Daniel checked on Peggy and Piper's health, Daphne checked over Troy's.

"Troy, what's going on, what happened!?" She suddenly gasped when she saw how violent Marco and Polonius looked at Mac and Lukie, who were too busy trying to prevent the Ghosts from getting to Troy and Peggy. "MARCO! What are you doing?!"

"T-They won't listen...!" Troy winced as he strained to stand up properly. Peggy and the twins looked up at Troy in confusion.

"What do you mean?!" Daniel asked impatiently. Troy held onto his bruised shoulder as he began to observe the anarchy around him again.

"I-I think they're being manipulated...I tried to have Zane back Mac and Lukie, but he turned against us...it was like he had no will of his own...same with Marco and Polo..." Daniel kept his eye on his Banette; he began to notice how, underneath the enraged bravado, stoic Polonius appeared to be and began to notice that his eyes were paler than he recalled.

"I think you're right...but...but what's-"

"We can worry about that when the Daycare Centre isn't a Nightmare Centre!" Daphne exclaimed. "We need Ty and Al to help out!"

"You're right. Ty, you up for this?!" The Hitmonlee looked back at Daniel confidently.

"Lee," he nodded. Al grinned at Daphne as he nodded.

"Mon-chan!"

"Okay, then, Al, use Fire Punch on Marco!" Daphne instructed, despite looking and feeling heavily hesitant. "...sorry, Marco..."

"Ty, Blaze Kick on Polonius!" Daniel instructed. "My apologies, Polo..."

"Chan!"

"Lee!"

Al and Ty charged towards their targets, fist and foot burning in brilliant orange flames before they crashed the burning limbs into the faces of their respective targets. Daphne covered her eyes just before her Hitmonchan punched her Dusknoir's face in, unable to witness her own Pokémon brawling against one another.

"Mac, Lukie, you hanging in there?!" Troy asked. Lukie and Mac looked back at Troy with heavy hearts.

"Boar..." Mac shook his head.

"Wahh...Wahh..." Lukie panted, also shaking his head. Troy smiled gently as he returned his drained Pokémon back into their Poké Balls.

"Whatever you two did with Marco and Polo, it was enough to give Mac a run for his money!"

"Marco and Polo are our second strongest Pokémon team," Daniel explained. "Roland and Rhonda are our strongest, but they're tired from Adelina."

"Peggy mentioned something like that; I was gonna come help you, but then all this happened!" Nobody seemed to notice a Pikachu sneaking up on Peggy from the ground level.

"It's okay, we brushed her off as soon as we heard that explosion."

"That was a Fire Punch clash between Marco and Mac," Troy explained. Piper spotted the Pikachu, but Troy suddenly had an idea. "Hang on! Piper can use Sing, can't she?!"

"Yeah, why?" Daphne asked.

"Just an idea based on what Grandpa did a while ago; he-"

"PIKAAA!" The Pikachu leapt towards Peggy, veiled in his own electricity. Piper flew out of Peggy's arms and inhaled deeply.

"BLUUUUU!" Piper exhaled the largest pillar of green flames that she could possibly expel from her tiny little body. The flames crashed into the Pikachu's head and knocked him down to the ground, but it wasn't enough to deter the Electric Mouse Pokémon. Troy and the twins were alarmed by the Pikachu's appearance and Piper's noble act.

"Why is everyone trying to hurt me!?" Peggy asked tearfully.

"Blu-Blu-Blu!" Piper said furiously. Daphne held onto her panicky sister gently while Daniel clenched his fist; he began to see a connection between Adelina's presence at Striaton Academy and Troy's Daycare suddenly falling into disarray.

"Don't blame the Pokémon, Peggy..."

"Pika...!" The Pikachu surrounded himself with electricity that was aiming directly at Piper.

"Blu...!" In retaliation, Piper began to absorb sunlight into the two antennae on her head. Troy had another idea and looked towards Michael in the paddock.

"MICHAEL! SUNNY DAY!" he shouted as loud as he could. The Ninetales looked back at Troy and gave his master a firm nod before he straightened all nine of his thick and bushy tails; within a mere second, the sun's rays intensified over the entire route.

"BLU!" The extra sunlight allowed Piper's Solarbeam to charge in a matter of moments, consequently allowing Piper to attack Pikachu with the concentrated beam of solar energy before Pikachu could attack with his tremendous lightning bolt. Pikachu was pushed back from the force of the Solarbeam and fainted after crashing into the staircase leading up to the Daycare Centre. Before anyone could praise Piper for her victory, the little Swablu suddenly began to shine in a beautiful blue and white glow that swallowed her entire figure completely.

"Whoa!"

"W-What's wrong with-"

"There's nothing wrong with her, Peggy, she's...evolving!" Daniel exclaimed in shock. Sure enough, Piper's tiny Swablu figure ceased to exist as the light consuming her morphed into a shape that almost looked like Annabelle; her neck grew longer, but her head grew smaller and her cranial streamers grew longer, her five tail feathers sprouted and her cotton-like wings grew longer and fluffier. When the glow finally faded, Piper had evolved from a little Swablu into a juvenile Altaria, being the exact same height as Peggy from head to talons.

"Ti-ruuuh!" Euphoric, Peggy rushed over to her newly evolved Altaria and gave her a big hug that Piper had no problems with accepting.

"Piper, thank you! You saved me!" Piper nuzzled Peggy affectionately.

"Ti-ruuh~!" Troy turned his attention to the paddock; he saw that Michael and, more alarmingly, Perri were on the verge of collapse due to exhaustion.

"There's no time for congratulations! Piper, we need you to sing the Pokémon to sleep! ALL of them, even the ones who haven't turned!" Troy cried desperately.

"Ti-ruuuh!" Piper nodded as she took flight. Daniel and Daphne returned their Fighting Pokémon back into their Poké Balls just in time for Piper to begin singing a soothing melody; as she sang, multicoloured musical notes escaped her beak and caused the Pokémon they bumped into to fall into a peaceful slumber. Piper flew around the entire area slowly, making sure her lullaby sent everyone in the vicinity to sleep. One of the stray musical notes disappeared into the bushes just below the Daycare Centre. Eventually, Piper's song reached its end, and so did the chaos; not only were Marco and Polonius asleep, but every Pokémon in the paddock, including Michael and Perri, were sleeping their stresses away. Everyone took a moment to appreciate the calm Piper's lullaby had brought to the Daycare Centre; the chaos felt as though it went on for so long Troy almost forgot what peace and quiet sounded like. Troy eventually smiled towards the Hawkstone siblings, notably Daphne and Peggy.

"...shouldn't you be in school?" Daphne laughed slightly.

"Shut up, Troy..."

Ryder and Jollie kept their eyes on Alexa, who was still carrying the exact same look of complete rage she harboured at the hotel room as she made her way into Join Avenue. She seemed to slow her pace down and soften her demeanour as soon as she walked into the market-like route, neither of which had escaped Ryder's notice.

"A-Alex...? Are you-"

"I'm...I'm sorry, guys...I'm just..." Alexa strayed away from the straight and narrow road ahead of her to sit on a nearby bench along the route. "I-I couldn't take it anymore...!" Concerned, Ryder and Jollie sat on either side of Alexa; Ryder rested his paw on Alexa's shoulder, while Jollie rested hers on her thigh as she looked up at her distressed Trainer with worry. "...i-it was too much...!"

"I know...your stress is through the ozone..." Alexa ran her fingers through her golden hair until she found several tangles; she remained silent as she pulled her hair apart to untangle it manually.

"Sounds about right," she sighed finally.

"Buneary...!"

"So, uh...what do we do now? I guess going back to your parents is out of the question," Ryder guessed.

"Yep," Alexa said quickly. She leaned back and kept quiet as she began to consider her remaining choices, Ryder and Jollie watching her slightly anxiously throughout her pondering. "...we should be in Driftveil in little over an hour if we leave now."

"Driftveil?" Ryder questioned.

"It's like I said; I want to check on the damage Keith suffered through... Plus...I said I'd see him if I couldn't nip things in the bud...it's apparent that I made things worse instead..." Now Ryder and Jollie had further reason to fear for Alexa's well-being; it was evident that Alexa was starting to believe her father's harsh words.

"A-And going to Driftveil on foot will give both you and Keith time to collect yourselves?" Ryder asked, hoping to change the subject. Alexa nodded.

"Exactly; the more time we take, the better." Ryder and Jollie smiled at Alexa.

"Lead the way, m'lady."

"Bun-bun!" Alexa chuckled as she pulled her Lucario and Buneary into a gentle cuddle that they happily returned to her.

"Thanks, guys...it's good to know I still have someone in my corner..."

"You've always got us – and the rest of your Pokémon – in your corner."

"I know...that doesn't mean I appreciate it any less...thank you."

"Bun-eary~!" Jollie nuzzled Alexa's cheek, making her laugh.

"And I love all of you, too." Alexa chose to hold her Buneary in one arm as she and Ryder stood up from the bench and looked towards the gateway that led to Nimbasa City. "How many times have we been to Nimbasa City now?" she asked as she and Ryder made their way towards the city in question.

"I think we all lost track ages ago," Ryder laughed.

 _To be continued..._


	36. Chapter 36

**Chapter XX – Chain Reaction**

Keith and Alexa approached a wide river in the chilly Sophian Island in the Oblivia region; Reese immediately began to frolic in the crispy cold water flowing by, but the Chandelure hovering near Alexa kept a cautious eye on the little Buizel, watching for any splashing in his direction. Keith and Alexa's Pokémon Ranger uniforms were relatively creased, as though they were due or overdue for laundering, and the soles of their shoes were stained with dried mud that not even the river's current could wash off. The Rangers themselves, however, appeared to be immensely crabby.

"It hasn't even been a day...not ONE day...yet we're already on another mission," Keith grumbled.

"I don't like it any more than you do, but we can't ignore something like this," Alexa argued reasonably as she and Keith began to walk up the river, treading against the flow of the current. The water wasn't very deep; it went no further than half way up their shins. "C'mon, Franz."

"Chandelure," Franz said compliantly as he hovered after her. Through the corner of his orange eye, he looked back at the bathing Buizel; his twin tails were spinning together as he swam after Keith and Alexa.

"So two Pokémon are having a spat; what's the big deal?" Keith complained.

"The fact that they're having it in the ruins up ahead," Alexa explained, trying to maintain a professional manner. "It's important to the residents of Sophian Island that the ruins are left as untouched as humanly possible."

"So what's the plan, then?" Keith asked, speeding up his pace and unintentionally distancing himself from his partners. "We calm them down with our stylers and you give 'em some psychiatric pep talk?"

"I don't know about the last one, but-"

"Yeah, well, here's hoping that-" Alexa's sudden shriek cut Keith's sentence short and panicked him a little as he turned around to face her; before he could call her name, he realised that she wasn't in the kind of distress he was presuming – a Sewaddle fell from one of the trees alongside the river and was caught in Alexa's hair, making her tangles even worse.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!"

"What's wrong?!" Keith asked in complete bafflement.

"She's stuck in my hair...!" Alexa replied through her teeth as she tried to endure the sharp pains from the top of her head.

"Sewaaah...!"

"J-J-Just stay still, okay?" Alexa said quietly. "Franz, c-can you-"

"Lure," Franz nodded. His orange and yellow eyes shone in a snow white light moments before the same glow veiled Alexa's tangled mess of her hair. Alexa occasionally flinched as her Chandelure very carefully untangled the worst knots in her hair, eventually freeing the startled Sewaddle.

"Whew...thanks, Franz," Alexa said with complete relief as she held her left arm to her shoulder, allowing the Sewaddle to climb onto her hand. "Try not to climb up too high, okay? Branches get thinner as you go up."

"Sewaddle," the Sewaddle nodded as Alexa returned her to the tree she presumably fell from. Sewaddle walked into the hole in the tree trunk as Alexa returned to Keith's side; his confusion had changed into a look of discontent. Alexa didn't appreciate the look he was giving her.

"Get back to me when you know what a bad hair day is."

"Let's just get this over with," Keith sighed as he walked further up the river. Alexa motioned the Pokémon to follow them as she resumed her trek; Franz and Reese followed, beginning to worry about their human companions.

The two Rangers eventually made their way inside the ruins and approached a pathway that almost looked flooded; there was a plentiful amount of water around the broken up stone pathway, which was almost completely covered with slimy green moss that also grew in small patches on the walls lining the pathway, with statues of some kind of ancient armour were placed inside the indents of the walls and appeared free from any sort of moss. Keith, Alexa and Reese proceeded carefully, keeping their pace relatively slow; Franz, however, had no problems – he hovered alongside Alexa and began to play with his purple and lavender flames, using his white Psychic energy to mould it into random shapes he could think of, including other Pokémon like Skitty and Taillow.

"Huh; this place looks...interesting... You ever come across this place in your home schooling?"

"Briefly; these ruins contain a prophecy that involves the birds of Fire, Ice and Lightning and Ho-Oh...which makes no sense."

"How so?"

"Ho-Oh isn't related to Articuno, Zapdos and Moltres; Lugia is." Keith raised an eyebrow.

"Why would Oblivia say otherwise?"

"I dunno, it's one of the more benign controversies in the scientific community; some are disputing the legitimacy of these ruins, in fact."

"What about Ian?"

"He's definitely Team Lugia, firmly believing that Ho-Oh is related to the legendary beasts Entei, Raikou and Suicune as per Ecruteak Lore," Alexa explained. "Personally, though, I'm not AS 'pro-Lugia' as my Grandpa, but I don't buy the whole 'Ho-Oh/legendary birds' relationship either."

"Is that because you were born and raised in Joh-WAAAAH!" Keith's foot suddenly slipped through a gap in the pathway; his leg fell into the water and he crashed onto the soggy stone underneath him.

"Keith! C'mon, I've got you!" Alexa immediately hurried to his aid and pulled his arm over her shoulder as she tried to hoist him up. However, her foot slipped as she fell backwards; Franz instantly turned his Psychic energy onto her, stopping her from falling at the petty cost of the Drifloon-shaped flame that he had in front of his face. With Alexa firmly in place, Keith managed to stand himself up, using Alexa as his support. With Keith firmly back on the path, Franz released Alexa from his telekinetic grip and watched the pair anxiously as they looked at one another with slight indifference. "You okay?"

"I've had worse." Keith tried to sound reassuring, but Alexa couldn't feel anything from his words.

"L-Let's just keep going before it happens again."

"You've read my mind, girl," Keith muttered quietly as the pair continued down the shattered pathway.

Keith, Alexa and their Pokémon finally arrived at the ruins at the end of the pathway, but it wasn't the feuding Swampert and Druddigon that made them turn pale with disgust; there was hardly any footing before them – there were square panels scattered across the water flooding the area, much like the pathway, with more moss on the stone flooring. Reese looked down into the water and saw that it was deep enough for Keith and Alexa to swim in and for them to submerge underwater if they wished, which annoyed Keith even further; there was little room for manoeuvre, though it appeared to him and Alexa that it was of no consequence to Swampert or Druddigon.

"...I get Swampert, you get Druddigon?" Keith asked quickly.

"Makes no difference to me," Alexa shrugged. "Let's just get this over with."

"Gladly," Keith agreed as he and Alexa scattered across the ruins, headed for their respective targets with their stylers at the ready.

"Capture ON!" they declared as they fired their trademark spinning tops from their stylers.

"Get ready, Reese!"

"Franz, let's go!"

"Pokémon Assist!" Keith and Alexa exclaimed in unison.

"Chandelure!" Franz fired a purple and lavender ball of fire from the top of his head; as it crashed into Alexa's capture disc and turning the blue and white energy trail into a burning red, orange and yellow trail, stray embers scattered across the area – the powered up capture disc caused flames to surround Druddigon with each lap it made around the rough skinned Dragon Pokémon, causing it to feel tired out for reasons it couldn't understand.

"Bui!" Reese, with his paw freezing over, punched Keith's capture disc, turning its energy trail into a cyan blue and white one that caused artificial snowball to form in front of it as Keith moved it in any direction he could; Keith then flicked this snowball at Swampert, causing the Mud Fish Pokémon to completely freeze over.

Keith and Alexa continued to circle their targets until white rings formed around them, shrunk and veiled them in their soothing light. The two Rangers sighed with relief.

"And that's capture complete," Keith said quietly as he recalled his capture disc. Alexa picked hers up off of the floor as she approached Druddigon and the Swampert Franz was in the process of thawing out; he made a Mudkip out of his fire and used his Psychic to make it run around the iceberg, melting it in the process. Reese was entertained by Franz's display, but Keith was confused and frustrated by Alexa's actions; he couldn't tell what she was doing, but he didn't want to waste any more time and leave as soon as possible. "What are you doing now?"

"Making sure nobody's hurt," Alexa replied, undeterred by his irritation. Keith waited in silence as Alexa carried out her check; neither Druddigon nor Swampert had any critical injuries aside from the occasional bruise she found on their bodies. "Okay, you're both fine. Just do everyone a favour and take your disputes outside next time."

"Swamp," Swampert nodded.

"Druuh," Druddigon agreed begrudgingly. Alexa stood up properly as the two Pokémon separated and ventured towards different parts of the ruins; Swampert dove into the water, while Druddigon made his way towards the doorway at the far end of the ruins.

"Huh; that didn't take long," Keith said bluntly as Alexa and Franz approached him.

"A simple 'yes, ma'am'; they're obviously men of few words," Alexa said as she returned her capture disc to its original position. "Let's go." Keith merely nodded as the pair finally made their way out of the ruins, like Keith wanted to do two minutes ago.

Almost as soon as Keith and Alexa made their way to the top of Silver Falls, heavy rain began to fall, drenching the two Rangers immediately. Reese rejoiced at the sudden change in weather, but Franz sought shelter underneath the waterfall. Alexa returned her frightened Chandelure to his Poké Ball just before she and Keith, both feeling overwhelmingly cranky and annoyed, walked down the river and back to where they started. Reese followed them, merrily dancing in the heavy rainfall.

Rhythmi, Linda and Marcus were all at their desks in the Operations room, monitoring activity in the Almia, Kalos and Sevii regions. Professor Hastings and Chairperson Erma stood in front of another teen Ranger with brunette hair that flicked at the back of his head, similar to a Swellow's tuft, blue-green eyes and a Chimchar standing happily next to his right leg.

"How was your mission, Kellyn?" Hastings asked keenly.

"It wasn't as drastic as we thought," Kellyn answered, his voice youthful and full of optimism. "Turned out the problem was a Galvantula nest was in the core of the power plant, which is why the whole of Kalos was without power."

"Thank Arceus it wasn't some miscreant attempting to steal the electricity," Hastings said gratefully.

"What became of the nest, dear?" Erma asked. Kellyn shrugged.

"I captured the Galvantula and the three dozen or so Joltik and transferred them to Santalune Forest; I thought it'd be best for them to live with other Bug Pokémon and Santalune Forest is the best place to find Bug Pokémon."

"Well, it sounds like a job well done to me, Kellyn; mission clear!" Hastings smiled.

"Thanks!"

"Chimchar!" Chimchar rejoiced.

"Now..." Hastings looked over his shoulder to look at Linda. "Linda, do we have an update on Kate's mission yet?"

"No contact as of yet, Professor," Linda replied. As he turned his head to look at Kellyn again, Hastings spotted a heavily drenched and disgruntled Keith and Alexa approaching him from the escalator; seeing their state alarmed the professor.

"We're back," Keith sighed.

"Whoa! What happened to you two?!" Kellyn asked out of concern. "Are you guys okay?"

"It was raining when we left the region," Keith explained quietly.

"It was like Kyogre's baby shower," Alexa groaned.

"But you ARE okay, right?" Kellyn asked again endearingly.

"I s'pose..." Keith glared at Alexa slightly. "All things considered..."

"That's a relief," Kellyn smiled.

"Change out of your uniforms before anything else," Hastings advised. "The last thing we want is for the pair of you to end up sick."

"Thanks, Professor," Alexa said appreciatively as she and Keith made their way back down the escalator. Linda's terminal began to ring, picking up an incoming transmission; Linda picked up the call.

"This is Kate; just to let you know, Professor, that all of the Sharpedo are now back in the ocean and are not cluttering the Grand Lake Hotel's swimming pool," said a very energetic and peppy young voice.

"That SUCKED!" Keith complained as he and Alexa made their way inside their Union bedroom. Alexa instantly raided the wardrobe for fresh towels; she picked out two white towels and tossed one over to Keith, who caught the flying rectangular fabric and slapped it over his spiky crimson hair. Alexa placed her towel on the top of her head and began to carefully rub her hair dry.

"But, hey, at least it's over now, right?" she said optimistically. Keith huffed, much to Reese's worry.

"At least it's mission CLEAR this time!" he argued in frustration. Alexa looked at him with concern.

"Keith-"

"Y'know, our last mission before this one? That Helioptile should NOT have died!" Alexa began to feel unbelievably tense.

"I-I know, but-"

"Y'know, if you didn't have your stupid Mawile with you that day, that Helioptile wouldn't have ended up as that Pyroar's dinner!" Keith yelled in anger as he slammed his soggy jacket onto the spare bed next to Alexa; she jumped as the wet piece of clothing sunk into the untouched white duvet clothes and watched for a brief moment as the rainwater the jacket absorbed seeped into the otherwise pristine bedclothes. Insulted, Alexa glared at Keith.

"Are you SERIOUSLY blaming Millie for what happened to Helioptile?!"

"It's either on HER head or YOURS for bringing her in the first place!" Keith shouted furiously.

"We were trying to make him feel safe!" Alexa retaliated defensively as she pulled her own jacket off of her; it was almost stuck to her that she felt like she was peeling it off of her. Keith huffed a small laugh as Alexa hung her jacket on the end of her bed, away from the bedclothes.

"Yeah, well, he's definitely safe now; you can't die TWICE!" Alexa slipped the towel off of her head and rubbed the rest of her hair with it; however, more tangles formed in her hair due to its length.

"Professor Hastings agreed that Helioptile's death was a tragic accident-"

"It WAS tragic, Alexa; it could have been avoided altogether!" Keith yelled abruptly. Alexa ceased her rubbing as she at Keith with discomfort.

"Keith, I-I tried my best to-"

"Your best?! Yeah, good job killing ANOTHER Pokémon, Hero!" Keith shouted with infuriated sarcasm. Alexa felt terribly mortified and heartbroken. "Y'know, it's like your best stopped being good enough after Operation Brighton; ever since then, you've been getting into trouble left, right and centre – like all you're good for is getting into trouble!" Keith saw Alexa shivering in place as she began to tear up, but it wasn't until the towel slipped out of Alexa's grasp and dropped onto the floor that he realised what just came out of his mouth...and it horrified him to the core and beyond. "Oh, God...! A-Alexa, I-"

Alexa gave Keith no chance to repent for his insensitive words of brutality; without a second thought for anything else, she fled the room, her sobbing having commenced. Keith chased Alexa out of the room, but nobody else saw Professor Hastings walking down the escalator; he watched as Alexa fled down the escalator on the opposite side of the floor in tears, and then spotted Keith watching her as she ran away.

"Alexa, wait!" he called desperately.

"Keith!" Keith yelped as he faced the now livid Professor.

"P-Professor Hastings!" Hastings glared at the panicking Ranger.

"I think I'd like to hear your full report now...INCLUDING the part where you drove your PARTNER away in TEARS!" he roared furiously. Keith looked away from Hastings shamefully as a very bemused Erma and Kellyn made their way down the escalator to investigate the cause of the commotion, Chimchar sitting comfortably on Kellyn's shoulder.

"Professor? What's going on?" Kellyn asked in confusion. Erma noticed how remorseful Keith looked and became concerned.

"I'm about to find out," Hastings said calmly. "Keith. The office. Now."

 _~ Fin_


	37. Chapter 37

**Chapter Thirty Six – Hindsight**

Hayden sat on the sofa with his face buried in his palms as Lily sat next to him and wrapped her arms around her distraught husband. Harvey rubbed the back of his next, guilt plaguing him as Alexa's outburst haunted his mind. Hailey and Colin gently held onto one another for solace as the harsh atmosphere lingered in the hotel room. Between them, all five of the adults felt incredibly guilty for what they had just witnessed. Lily looked at her husband with immense concern.

"Hayden? Honey, are you okay?"

"I've just driven our daughter away, Lily; how do you think I feel?" Hayden asked pessimistically. Harvey sighed heavily.

"...it wasn't you, bro; it was me."

"What are you talking about?" Hailey asked quietly. Harvey looked towards his sister with a tremendous amount of regret in his eyes.

"You heard what she said; I could have shared my idea with her before the Contest."

"We all could have done; it's not just on you," Colin said; he tried to sound reassuring, but his own guilt hindered his positivity.

"...it's my fault," Hayden said sadly. "I should have said something to her when Lily spoke to me about it." Hailey shook her head.

"Playing the blame game won't help anything." Harvey raised an eyebrow at her.

"We're blaming ourselves, not other people."

"You know what I mean," Hailey pouted.

"Look, what's done is done; we need to focus on trying to salvage this," Lily said affirmatively. Hailey grinned and nodded.

"Yeah, I agree! We've been so focused on Adelina that we've neglected the problems closer to home!" Her smile waned slightly. "As for me...I should have paid more attention to my babies after Daniel's suspension...like Colin said I should," she said with slight embarrassment. Colin pulled her closer to him and cuddled her, holding her head lightly against his shoulder.

"I should have done the same, Honeybee..." Hayden sighed as he very slightly raised his head from his palms and his arms dropped down over his knees loosely.

"...what do we do now?"

"For now? Ignore Adelina entirely, take a step back to compose ourselves and save our families," Lily replied softly. Lily's proposition cheered Hailey, Colin and Harvey up, though it seemed to have no profound effect on Hayden.

"Daniel DID say Adelina wanted us to fall apart...so I'm going to put all of my attention into making sure that her wish doesn't come true!" Harvey huffed a small and light-hearted chuckle.

"We all will, sis."

"What do you think, Hayden?" Colin asked. However, Hayden gave no response; all he could think about were the last words he heard Alexa speak before she stormed out of the hotel room, and those hurtful words stuck to him like glue.

"Tiger..." Lily couldn't help but worry for Hayden even more. Hayden looked towards Lily and would have provided her with some sort of verbal response if Hailey's Xtransceiver hadn't started to emit a melody that sounded like wind chimes blowing in a violent hurricane without the gale. All eyes turned to Hailey as she looked at the identity of her caller before accepting the communication; Daphne's bright and sunny face appeared on the screen.

"Hi, Mum!"

"Daphne! Wait, how come you're not in school?" Hailey asked, noticing the background behind her daughter; while she couldn't see it too well, she saw enough of it to tell that she was indeed not at a classroom in Striaton Academy.

"Uh, y-yeah, that's why I'm calling... W-We found Adelina at the academy..."

"What!? Daphne, please tell me you didn't chase her away!" Hailey panicked.

"No, no, no, it's not like that!" Daphne said hastily, panicking herself. "She was battling Daniel, so I gave her a hand after he made Peggy run away!"

"To the museum?" Daphne was perplexed.

"I dunno, he whispered it to her so Adelina wouldn't hear and try to follow her..."

"She didn't make it that far anyway," Daniel said loudly. The adults were confused.

"What happened?" Hailey asked.

Inside Troy's lounge, Troy and Daniel were working together to take care of the select few Pokémon that were injured during the assault on the Daycare Centre; Brent, Lukie and Mac, their wounds fully tended to and bandaged accordingly, also helped with the first aid, while Perri and Michael stayed near the pregnant Purugly, making sure she was as perfectly calm as possible. Peggy sat on the sofa next to her older sister and watched nervously as she spoke to her mother.

"We don't know," Daphne said bluntly. "When we got to the Daycare Centre, everything was chaotic; some of the Pokémon in the paddock turned against the others – even Marco and Polo turned against us!"

"How in the...?!"

"W-We don't know, but it's over now!" Daphne said nervously. "We're in the process of taking care of the Pokémon that got hurt during the chaos."

"O-Okay, but you and Peggy should really get back to school when you're done," Hailey advised.

"We will, I promise," Daphne smiled. "But not before I show you something." Daphne looked away from her Xtransceiver briefly. "Hey, Piper, c'mere a sec and say hi!" Hailey was confused until Piper approached Daphne and looked at the Xtransceiver from over her shoulder; seeing the Altaria shocked Hailey to the very core, but a wide grin made its way onto her face.

"Ti-ruuh!"

"Oh, my days, how did that happen?!"

"What happened?" Colin asked.

"Piper evolved!"

"No way, for real?!" Soon enough, Hailey lowered her arm to allow Daphne to fully see the faces of her father and older uncle. Harvey grinned as he laughed. "That's the real deal, all right! Piper, you really do look just like your mother!"

"Ti-ruuuh," Piper blushed, flattered by Harvey's observation.

"I've always said so, Harvey," Colin laughed.

"Did that happen during the Daycare Chaos?" Hailey wondered.

"Yeah, she really saved the day," Daphne said proudly. "And Peggy to boot!" Peggy shuffled herself to get a better view of Daphne's Xtransceiver; Hailey was relieved to see her youngest child unharmed.

"Oh, well done, baby...! I'm so proud of you – ALL of you!" Daniel stood up from the Furfrou he'd just finished treating and walked over to Piper, standing next to her as he looked down at his sister's Xtransceiver.

"Thanks, but what should we do about Adelina now?" he asked fairly keenly. Hailey smiled contently, confusing him.

"Nothing." All three of the Hawkstone kids were alarmed, but hearing Hailey's answer was almost music to Troy's ears, smiling as he resumed treating Pikachu's bruises.

"Nothing?"

"From now on, it's all about our families; don't give Adelina even a single thought." Daphne grinned widely.

"If she wasn't dead wood before, she sure is now!" Even Daniel was smiling.

"Thank you so much for saying that, Mum..."

Adelina groaned angrily as she walked away from the front door of the Daycare Centre, having eavesdropped on Daphne's conversation with Hailey. Huey followed her and looked up at her fearfully as she stormed towards Striaton City.

"How am I supposed to do my thing when the subjects ignore my every move!? Urgh!" She looked at the Poké Ball in her hand; it was encased in a Seal Capsule with three black smoke stickers placed on the top half in a triangular formation. "This wouldn't have happened if Carter had kept his ears shut during that bluebird's nursery rhyme...!"

"Reow...!" Adelina sighed as she flicked a small lock of her hair away from her face.

"I need to rethink this...things have taken a bad turn..."

The afternoon sky was beginning to transition from a brilliant blue to a warming orange by the time Alexa, Ryder and Jollie began their venture through Nimbasa City. By now, most of the pedestrians were enjoying themselves in the amusement park on the farther side of the city, as the streets were mostly completely empty. Alexa eventually stopped walking entirely, causing Ryder and Jollie to walk in front of her; however, they soon realised that Alexa wasn't following them and faced her in confusion.

"What's up?" Alexa held onto her arm nervously.

"I...I forgot to ask...what do you think?" A-About what-"

"A load of Tauros crap, that's what," Ryder snarled as he and Jollie approached Alexa. "I HEARD what Hayden said from the room and he had no right to defend you after he crushed you like he did!"

"...about what Uncle Harvey said," Alexa said grumpily, concluding her sentence. Ryder felt sheepish.

"Oh! Uh..." Ryder nervously rubbed the back of his neck. "The timing of it sucked Shadow Balls, but...I actually think it's a good idea." Ryder's answer alarmed Alexa.

"Buneary?" Ryder nodded happily at Jollie before facing the astonished Alexa.

"You can't tell me you disagree."

"I-I don't know yet!" Alexa exclaimed suddenly. "It..." She gripped her arm slightly. "It's like you said; the timing stunk... ...it... I-I just didn't appreciate it falling onto my lap when it did..." Ryder folded his arms and tilted his head slightly.

"Like how Hayden didn't appreciate our Team Galactic thing falling on his lap when it did?" he wondered. The amount of shock Alexa felt at that moment was immense; it was as though she'd just been struck by a lightning of realisation, and it struck her right on her heart. Jollie looked up at Ryder angrily.

"Bun-EARY!"

"N-No, he's right," Alexa sighed glumly. "...and he wasn't being rude; it was a legit question..."

"Buuuuuuuuh...!" Jollie and Ryder watched as Alexa made her way towards the bench near the bridge and sat down on it.

"Oh, God...!" Alexa buried her face in her palms. "I-I shouldn't have waited so long to tell them...!" she said tearfully. Jollie hurried over to Alexa and held onto her in a gently cuddle, but Ryder stood in front of her and gave her a gentle smile.

"Nothing we can do about it now, but at least it's out now, right?" Alexa sighed as she dropped her arms down over her knees and looked towards the river flowing through the city.

"Look where that got me," Alexa said glumly. Ryder was concerned at first, but he soon turned frustrated.

"THIS is why I like Harvey's idea!" he said suddenly. Alexa and Jollie looked up at him with surprise. "Ever since you came back from Oblivia, you've become this...I dunno, the Spoink who's lost the pearl on its head! You just...stopped being YOU! You, the almost parental Trainer with a wit that inspired mine! I want THAT Alexa back; I don't want the one that's...that's a Rock Throw away from being sadder than a Yamask!" Alexa lowered her head shamefully, worrying Jollie greatly. "Seriously, Alex...stop being such a whiny Lillipup!" Ryder shouted in anger. "...you're making ME a whiny Lillipup..." Jollie watched Alexa almost fearfully as she sat there in silence, allowing Ryder's words to sink in. Ryder himself started to feel apprehensive as he awaited Alexa's reply.

"...no...I'm not..." Ryder was alarmed when Alexa raised her head up to look at him...with a smirk. "I'm making you a whiny Lucario." Ryder grinned widely as his bushy tail began to wag violently. Jollie smiled with so much glee she could hardly contain it.

"See?! THAT'S the Alexa we ALL want to see! And there's no doubt in my mind that Keith and Xavier wouldn't want to see her, too."

"Bun, bun!" Jollie cheered encouragingly. Alexa's smirk softened to a sweet smile as she stood up.

"If you say so...but can you let me think about Uncle Harvey's idea when things are less hectic?"

"Oh! Y-Yeah, sure. Sorry about that," Ryder said timidly. Alexa chuckled as she stroked the top of Ryder's head.

"Thanks, Ryder." Ryder smiled at her as he gently rested his paw on Alexa's hand.

"Sure." Alexa smiled sweetly as she pulled her Lucario closer to her; he was alarmed as she suddenly embraced him, but was more than happy to wrap his arms around her. Jollie felt herself tearing up at the sight of two friends locked into their cuddle.

"Colin and I are going to make sure our girls get back to school okay," Hailey said as she and Colin made their way to the hotel room door. "We'll, uh...think of an excuse for them..."

"Are you sure you're okay with us leaving you alone, Lily?" Colin asked.

"Yes; we need to keep our focus on our family just as much as you need to focus on yours," Lily said kindly.

"I'll check up on Troy after I've brought Naomi up to speed," Harvey said as he opened the door. "Here's hoping I can bring my family back together."

"Harv, compared to the rest of us, you have it easy."

"Yeah, except I've been divorced for a good nine years," Harvey said crabbily. "Nonetheless, I think things are getting better for Naomi and I." Now carrying his traditional cheerful grin, Harvey looked over at Lily. "You look after my little brother, okay?"

"I haven't found a reason not to look after my Tiger just yet," Lily winked. "Be careful, all of you."

"We will," Hailey said comfortingly. "Bye!"

"Bye," Lily said in response as Hailey, Colin and Harvey walked out of the hotel room.

With the extended family gone, Lily could finally turn her undivided attention to her family, and she started with a very downtrodden Hayden. However, one of the two bedroom doors opened as a very reluctant Keenan made his way into the room, Iara faithfully at his side. Hayden and Lily looked over at Keenan and immediately noticed how reclusive he looked; it worried the pair of them.

"Are you okay, baby?" Lily asked with concern. Keenan shook his head slowly in silent response, but the apprehension Hayden and Lily felt intensified when Keenan held a hand over his eyes as he began to cry. "Hey...! Come here..." Accepting his mother's invitation for a cuddle, Keenan almost ran over to her and flung himself into her arms. Lily sat him down between her and Hayden as she began to comfort her sobbing son. "What's upset you, sweetie?" she asked gently.

"...e-everything...!" Hayden looked even more remorseful than ever before as he gently stroked the back of Keenan's head.

"I'm sorry, kiddo..." Iara walked over to the sofa and looked up at Keenan sympathetically.

"...m-me, too..."

"Hm?" Hayden was confused.

"N-Nothing..."

"What is it, sweetheart?" Lily asked dotingly. Keenan looked almost as regretful as his father, which alarmed Hayden.

"...I-I just... ...t-this shouldn't have happened...!" Keenan tried his hardest not to break into sobs as he spoke. "X-Xavier's injury, A-Alex running away... ...I-I just feel rotten about everything...!"

"Why?" Hayden asked gently as he, too, began to tear up; first his daughter was in distress and now his son was choking back his sobs – seeing both of his children, whom he adored equally, in such intense emotional pain took its toll on him.

"...I-I think it's MY fault...!"

"How do you mean, sweetie?" Lily asked in a soothing whisper, avoiding any further anxiety.

"...r-remember that photo I should you, Dad...?" Hayden wiped his eyes before he answered.

"Yeah?"

"W-While you were talking to Keith, I..." Keenan choked back another of his many sobs. "...I showed it to Alex...!"

"How come?" Lily asked carefully.

"S-She has a keener eye for detail than I do, I-I thought I could get her opinion on it...even though she said she didn't want to get involved...!"

"And you think that's why Adelina ambushed your sister?" Hayden asked as he wiped another tear from his eyes. Keenan nodded before he broke into his own tears again.

"Aw, honey...! None of that matters now...!"

"Huh?" Keenan looked up at his mother in bewilderment, his eyes already sore from his tears.

"We discussed this with your Aunt and Uncles; what we should do and what we ARE doing now is saving this family – Adelina is no longer a concern to any of us." Lily smiled kindly as she wiped her son's eyes. "Okay?" Keenan sniffed as he wiped his eyes, despite Lily already having done so.

"W-What about Alex...?" Hayden and Lily looked at one another worriedly before looking down at Keenan.

"...I...I think we should leave her be until she's ready to come back..." Lily's reply horrified Hayden while leaving Keenan heavily discouraged; neither of the reactions had escaped Lily's notice. "We've...we've not been kind to her today..." Hayden leaned back and hid his face in one hand as he fought back against his own tears.

"...you mean I've not been kind to her..." Lily looked at him sadly.

"Neither of us have, honey...I'm as guilty as you."

"At least you TRIED to be kind...!" Lily was crushed when Hayden looked at her directly; despite his best efforts, his tears fell gradually from his eyes, which reflected the sorrow deep inside him. "You heard her; I'M why she left in the first place!"

"Oh, Hayden..." Lily wiped a lingering tear from her eye before she smiled lovingly. "We need some respite."

"Huh?" Lily looked over at her confused husband.

"We should have an evening out, all three of us."

"No, thanks," Keenan said sadly. Hayden and Lily looked down at him in puzzlement.

"What's wrong, sweetie?"

"I...I don't wanna go out tonight...I don't feel like it..." Hayden and Lily felt worried, but they nodded respectfully.

"Okay, but are you sure you're going to be all right here on your own?" Keenan nodded.

"I have my Pokémon to look after me... Besides...I've been home alone before..."

"Not overnight," Hayden said worriedly.

"Oh, we'll be back before bedtime, easy," Lily said optimistically.

"It's hard to imagine how much time's passed by since this whole thing started," Ryder said as he observed the setting sun on the horizon, gradually turning the sky into an even more vibrant orange colour. He and Alexa walked along the road leading to the Driftveil Drawbridge, Jollie skipping alongside Alexa the entire time, her Soothe Bell jingling to her every movement.

"Yeah," Alexa nodded. She looked at the sunset for herself. "Unovan sunsets are really beautiful...but Hoenn sunsets are by far my absolute favourite...especially in Slateport..."

"I dunno; the sunset the day we met Skywing was pretty inspiring," Ryder smiled.

"Oh, yeah...that was gorgeous..." Alexa suddenly stopped walking when her Xtransceiver began to emit a very generic ringing telephone tune, causing Ryder and Jollie to stop and watch her as she accepted the voice only call. "H-Hello?"

"Hello, is this Miss Alexa Thorndyke?" asked a caring female. Alexa had a feeling she knew the voice, but she couldn't put her finger on who it belonged to.

"Speaking."

"Oh, good! It's Nurse Hardy speaking, from the Mistralton City Pokémon Centre?" The declared identity of the caller surprised Alexa, Ryder and Jollie. "I'm just calling to let you know that your Zoroark's surgery was a success and is now in Recovery."

"I-Is he okay?!" Alexa asked desperately. She quivered as she felt a sense of anxiety returning to her.

"I'm afraid we won't know until he regains consciousness," the nurse replied. Alexa was about to rush into asking if she could see her Zoroark, but halted herself. She took a deep breath and wiped her eyes, despite her lack of tears. She wanted to visit Xavier so badly, but she also knew that doing so before he was capable of carrying on any form of conversation would only add to her already overwhelming stress.

"...w-will you let me know when he wakes up, please?" Alexa's question surprised Ryder and Jollie greatly.

"Yes, absolutely!" Nurse Hardy said happily. "I'll call again as soon as I hear anything."

"T-Thank you..."

"You're welcome. Goodbye."

"Bye." Alexa hung up her Xtransceiver and took another deep breath. Ryder and Jollie stared at her in shock.

"Alex? What was that?" Ryder asked. Alexa avoided eye contact with her Pokémon, but Ryder soon smiled widely as his tail began wagging again. "Was that...was that you avoiding unnecessary stress?" he asked hopefully. Alexa gave him a tiny smile.

"...yes. Yes, it was."

"Buneary!" Alexa laughed as Jollie bounced up and flung herself into her arms.

"Thanks, Jollie." Through the corner of her eye, Alexa spotted the roadside café. Noticing the time of day, Alexa looked at the time on her Xtransceiver; the time it displayed shocked her. "HOW late?! I haven't eaten since breakfast! ...come to think of it, I don't think ANYONE has..."

"Huh; no wonder why I'm hungry." Alexa laughed as she petted her Lucario's head.

"Then why didn't you say anything earlier?! C'mon, let's get a quick bite."

"Works for me!"

"Buneary!"

 _To be continued..._


	38. Chapter 38

**Chapter Thirty Seven – Dusk**

Colin and Hailey quickly dismounted from the backs of their Salamence and Altaria as they headed straight into the Daycare Centre, their faithful dragon Pokémon following swiftly behind. Once through Troy's threshold, David and Annabelle hurried over to their newly evolved daughter and embraced her, both euphoric and proud of Piper's achievement. Similarly, Peggy shot off of Troy's sofa and flung herself into Hailey's arms.

"Hey, baby," Hailey greeted gently as she cuddled her youngest child. Colin looked around at the numerous recovering Pokémon around the room; the amount of bandages he saw staggered and somewhat disturbed the architect.

"Were things really this chaotic?" he asked Troy as he stood up off of the floor, holding onto the freshly bandaged Meowstic in his arms. The Meowstic held onto her bandaged tail and tried to hide her face from everyone present.

"Yep. Frankly, I'm just lucky the twins showed up when they did," he replied gratefully.

"I'm glad, but I think it's time the girls went back to school," Hailey said as she attempted to gather her two daughters. As Colin looked at the time on his Xtransceiver, he suddenly felt awkward.

"Hailey..." Hailey looked over at Colin in confusion until he held up his Xtransceiver, showing her the current time.

"...ah. School's out now." Now Troy felt bad.

"Sorry, Hailey. I shouldn't have joked about asking the girls if they should be in school, but-"

"No, it's fine...at this point, I'm just happy to be content. I can always meet the principal tomorrow and explain the situation..."

"Is that really the best idea?" Colin wondered.

"Do you have any better ideas?" Hailey asked, almost crankily.

"I'm not insinuating that it's a bad idea...I'm just wondering how the principal would react to a backstabbing Co-Ordinator terrorising her rival's children," Colin explained. Hailey merely shrugged in response.

"That's his problem; I'm not going to sugar coat it. For now, though, let's just enjoy what calmness we have."

"I agree," Daniel said with relief. Although part of him felt disturbed by how Adelina knew about his cruel nickname.

"Anyway, Troy, is there any—whoa!" Colin almost tripped over the heavily sleeping Furfrou as he walked towards Troy. "Uh, anything we can do to help?"

"I don't think so, but are you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine; that wasn't anything big," Colin laughed nervously.

Keenan sat gloomily on the sofa as Lily, Cheryl and Hayden exited their shared bedroom. Hayden had finally changed out of his business suit and into a more casual polo-shirt and jeans combination, while Lily changed into a tasteful blue sweatshirt and long black skirt that covered her knees and almost her ankles. Iara couldn't help but stare at Keenan anxiously as he ignored his parents preparing for their evening outing.

"Okay, your father and I both have our Xtransceivers if you need us for anything, but you can get a hold of either your aunts, uncles or even your grandfather if you can't reach us," Lily said as she very briefly tidied her long honey blonde hair. She began to worry a little when Keenan showed no response. "I would suggest utilising room service to get your dinner, as well as anything else you might need or want, and we should be back by bedtime unless you hear otherwise. Okay, sweetie?" Keenan simply nodded silently in reply, further worrying his father. Lily approached Keenan and crouched in front of him to achieve eye contact with him. "And don't worry about your sister; she'll come back when she's ready." Keenan felt little to no comfort from his mother's reassurance, picking up her well-masked sense of anxiety from Alexa's sudden departure.

"I hope so," he said quietly.

"Me, too," Hayden sighed as he took hold of his black wallet.

"Oh, you boys...!" Lily chuckled. She planted a quick, yet soft, kiss on Keenan's cheek that he instantly returned. "Take care of yourself, sweetie, and we'll see you later," she said kindly as she walked over towards Hayden.

"Bye, Mum, bye, Dad," Keenan said half-heartedly.

"See you later, kiddo," Hayden said just as unenthusiastically as he, Lily and Cheryl exited the hotel room. With his newfound solitude, Keenan suddenly lay on the sofa as he sighed; Iara jumped up to prevent Keenan's swinging legs from knocking her down. Iara then lay down on Keenan's chest, the gesture giving the boy a small sense of comfort that he felt grateful for as he began to softly stroke his mini Vaporeon; Iara sighed contently as she enjoyed the stroking.

Hayden shoved the hotel key card into his wallet before putting it in his pocket. Lily couldn't help but feel concerned for him.

"We don't have to do this, you know," she said as they walked away from the hotel room, Cheryl following close to Lily.

"What's the alternative? We search the entire Unova region for another heated debate with Alexa?" Hayden asked sadly. Lily suddenly stopped him from calling the elevator.

"Like I said to Keenan, she'll come back when she's ready. Besides, she has a lot on her plate and mind right now; let her deal with those first." Hayden sighed.

"Sorry..." Lily smiled weakly.

"Let's not worry about it now and just enjoy the evening."

"How? We don't even know what we're doing," Hayden said observantly.

"You don't, but I do," Lily said teasingly. "Cheryl, you know where to go."

"Gardevoir," Cheryl nodded compliantly as she relaxed her stance. With a brief flash of light blinding the corridor of the hotel floor, she, along with Hayden and Lily, disappeared from sight.

Alexa and Ryder sat opposite one another at a table at the roadside café near the Driftveil Drawbridge, away from the other café patrons. Alexa had a freshly baked ham salad sub roll with a creamy hot cocoa in front of her while Ryder, Jollie and Phoenix, who sat on the ground next to Alexa, enjoyed their plates of fresh poffins and warm MooMoo milks.

"So, what's the plan of action?" Ryder asked with a mouth full of half of his red poffin. Alexa looked over at him with confusion.

"Hm?"

"Y'know, for talking to Keith," Ryder clarified as he swallowed his poffin. As he waited for Alexa to finish her bite of sub roll, he tossed the rest of his poffin into his mouth and took a sip of his warm milk. Phoenix looked up at Alexa curiously as he chomped his pink poffin in half. Alexa swallowed before she began to speak.

"Actually, I'm...I'm going to talk to him alone."

"Rrrgh?" Phoenix, though mildly surprised by her decision, was impressed with her budding confidence. Ryder, though, wasn't so certain.

"You sure?" Jollie couldn't help but marvel at how Ryder was capable of speaking so clearly with his mouth full of food and drink at the same time.

"Yeah, I...it's a delicate matter; crowds won't do Keith any favours, I don't think," Alexa explained as she took a quick sip of her drink. "Uh, no offence."

"None taken, but we WILL be on hand if things get furry, right?" Phoenix raised an eyebrow at the Lucario; why would he need to be on hand during a conversation?

"Yes, but...the word's hairy, Ryder," Alexa said sheepishly.

"I know what I said," Ryder said cockily. Jollie chuckled, but Alexa began to feel rotten again, concerning her Charizard greatly.

"...I just hope Dad didn't hurt him too much..." Jollie and Ryder began to feel just as worried for Alexa as Phoenix.

"You can bring him around; just show him the Alexa you were meant to be and he'll be fine in no time flat," Ryder smiled. He felt worried again when he noticed Alexa's lack of confidence in his words. "C'mon, you KNOW what that is; I told you!"

"That's not what I'm worried about..."

"Hrrgh?"

"Then what is it?" Ryder asked worriedly. Alexa shook her head.

"I'm probably thinking too deeply into it, but...Uncle Harvey's proposition is still bothering me...the proposition itself, I mean, not the timing of its reveal..."

"How is that bothering you?" Ryder asked in confusion.

"It's like...like I need to choose...to choose between the Vatonage Styler and the Poké Ball," Alexa said sadly.

"Rhrrrhrrrgh?"

"It WOULD be the Poké Dex if I bothered to pick one up in the first place," Alexa grumbled.

"Rrrrgh, hrrrgh, rrrrrgh?"

"It's hard because...I just don't know what to do..." All three Pokémon looked at one another worriedly.

"I think you should take Harvey's proposal," Ryder said earnestly. "I mean...you lost everything that made you who you are after Oblivia, but things weren't exactly fantastic between then and Operation Brighton either..."

"But things didn't exactly end up being a bed of roses during my time as a Trainer either," Alexa said pessimistically. Ryder took a drink from his milk bottle as Phoenix sighed.

"Rrrrgh, rrrrrgh..." Ryder suddenly spat out his milk in horror before glaring violently at Phoenix.

"Forfeit her license!? Are you crazy?!"

"Buneary!" Jollie tried to calm Ryder down.

"He's just giving me options, Ryder!" Alexa said defensively. "...but I can't do that either..."

"Buneary?" Jollie looked over at Alexa in bewilderment.

"I'd be giving up on Lydia's sacrifice if nothing else... That's why it's so hard to choose between the life of a Ranger and the life of a Trainer; no matter which I pursue, I'll be giving something up!" Ryder was sceptical.

"Technically, though, you didn't give up being a Trainer while you were growing as a Ranger..."

"I know, but, this time, I can't have both," Alexa said definitively. "...I...I don't know..." Phoenix rubbed his cheek against Alexa's affectionately. Alexa seemed to cheer up slightly as she embraced her partner's gesture, gently resting her hand against his opposite cheek.

"Focus on sorting things out with Keith first...worry about that later. You avoided unnecessary stress before; do it again."

"Yeah...sorry I worried you guys..."

Harvey walked through the main doors of the Driftveil Star hotel just in time to witness a troubling discussion of sorts between Naomi and Keith; Robbie appeared to be hesitant, while Naomi looked both worried and perplexed.

"I-I just need to be alone, okay!?" Keith said snappily as he dashed towards the nearest elevator.

"Keith, hold on!" Naomi called, but Keith had already gotten inside the elevator before her words could reach his ears. Concerned again, Harvey approached Naomi.

"What was that about?" he asked as he petted the distressed Sawsbuck. His sudden arrival caught Naomi by surprise, but, at the same time, she was glad to see him.

"Oh! Harvey! I, uh, I don't know; he just asked me to look after his Sawsbuck and his other two Pokémon for the night."

"For the night?" Harvey asked in shock.

"He looked so upset I didn't have the heart to turn him down...I don't know what happened to him, the poor thing..." Harvey sighed silently.

"Hayden happened."

"Hayden?" Naomi asked in confusion.

"That's partly why I'm here; to bring you up to speed with everything," Harvey said truthfully. Naomi was even more lost than before; it was clear she'd missed out on a lot.

"So, uh, w-what happened between Keith and Hayden exactly?" Harvey shook his head.

"As soon as Hayden saw the kid, he just lost it and damn near traumatised him." Now Naomi understood the cause for Keith's sudden anxiety. "I've seen Hayden lash out before, but...that...that was disturbing..." Robbie looked back at the elevator; as much as he absolutely hated the idea of Keith being left alone in his emotional condition, he had no choice but to respect Keith's wishes.

"Harvey, is everything all right?" Naomi asked worriedly. Without warning, Harvey faced his ex-wife and held her close to him, catching her even further off guard.

"It is now," Harvey smiled. "That bronze burner is no longer our concern; as of...um...I guess ten minutes ago...we're ignoring her completely." Naomi wasn't as optimistic as Harvey was starting to become.

"Ignoring the problem won't make it go away..."

"I know, I know, but we're just focusing on something bigger – making sure our families don't fall apart." Naomi smiled.

"Sounds nice. Really, I mean that!"

"Mmhm," Harvey nodded as he continued to hold Naomi in his cuddle. "And I want that to include you." Naomi felt herself blushing from Harvey's heartfelt sentiment.

"...l-let's talk...over...tea? I don't know what you drink now..." Harvey laughed as he finally released Naomi from his gentle grip.

"It's still peppermint, hun." Naomi felt herself blushing even more than previously as she led Harvey and the reluctant Sawsbuck into her office.

Keith stormed into his hotel room and paced around as the door closed itself behind him. He held onto his head with both hands as he tried to comprehend what had happened outside Castelite, but the violent look in Hayden's eye was enough to petrify him with fear. Not knowing what else to do, he headed straight into the en suite.

" _By the way, Harvey, I've...I've been meaning to ask you..."_

" _What's up?"_

Keith turned the shower on and left it to warm up as he hastily removed both of his shirts at once. However, as the upper body garments were pulled over his head, he caught sight of his reflection in the mirror above the faucet, notably the scars on his chest.

" _Is it true? T-That you still love me, I mean..."_

" _Heh...I haven't lied to you before, have I?"_

Seeing the scars on his chest merely added to his anxiety as, out of frustration and despair, he threw his combined shirts at his reflection as he turned his back on it, almost losing himself in his tears.

" _...no...you haven't."_

 _To be continued..._


	39. Chapter 39

**Chapter Thirty Eight – Confiding pt I**

Colin was the first to enter the family home as he opened the front door. Hailey and Daniel carefully passed him by while he struggled to reclaim his keys from the door's lock, much to Daphne's amusement. Fortunately, Colin won the fight and moved away from the door to allow the newly evolved Piper into the house with her parents, Peggy and Daphne. While the rest of the family made its way to the kitchen, Colin locked the front door. In the kitchen, Daphne turned her attention to her mother.

"I'm sorry Peggy and I ended up skipping school," she apologised. Colin joined the conversation just in time for Hailey to respond.

"Honey, I understand why you did, but...the principal is going to punish the two of you for it," she cautioned.

"Yeah, I know," Daphne nodded. Despite looking equally as shameful as her sister, Peggy nodded understandingly.

"Are you going to punish us, too, Mummy?" she asked. Colin raised an eyebrow.

"We're not mad at you, sweetheart."

"That's not the point, Colin," Hailey said quietly, looking at her perplexed husband through the corner of her eye. Hailey turned back to her daughters and rubbed the back of her neck timidly. "Uh...y-you're confined to your rooms, I guess...although, after the day we've all had, I can't imagine seeing any of you out of your rooms until the morning anyway...I should probably think about it more in the morning..."

"I agree," Colin said simply.

"I'll bring your sandwiches up later on, okay?" Peggy and Daphne felt satisfied with the punishment they had received, despite how relatively weak it was, and nodded compliantly.

"Okay. Thank you," Peggy said graciously as she made her way towards and up the stairs. Daphne and Daniel nodded at Hailey as they passed her, following Peggy's direction. Hailey and Colin watched as Piper hurried over to the stairs and struggled to climb them; her new wings, despite being closed, rubbed against the wall and the banister, making it hard for the juvenile Altaria to hop up the steps. It wasn't until David gave her a boost that Piper finally made her way up to Peggy, who had patiently waited for her at the top of the stairs. Hailey chuckled.

"Aw, bless...!"

"Give her a break, Hailey; she probably forgot that her wings are much larger now."

"And fluffier. I wouldn't be surprised if Peggy slept in Piper's wings tonight."

In her bedroom, Daphne flung herself onto her bed and sighed contently as her head fell onto her pillows. Daniel chuckled and shook his head as he searched his school rucksack for Night of The Clefairy Dance.

"Mum's right; I ain't leaving this room until tomorrow!"

"Comfy already, huh?" Daniel asked behind a laugh as he sat down on his bed. Daphne sat up as Daniel opened his book to the bookmarked pages.

"And you're oddly content all of a sudden," she noted as Daniel looked down at the words in his book.

"We're focusing our attention on where it should be; you bet I'm content." Daphne leaned her head against her pillows again, smiling proudly.

"And Piper...man, I didn't think she was even CLOSE to evolving, but she sure showed us!"

"Every cloud has a silver lining." Daniel suddenly lost his smile and most of his focus on his story. "...I learned that the hard way." Daphne suddenly sat up again and looked at her younger twin with worry.

"Danny-"

"I mean, how the HELL did she even know about the Two-Tone thing?!" Daniel asked in frustration.

"Stop before you turn into a hypocrite," Daphne said crankily. "You just said-"

"I know what I just said!" Daniel retorted. "But, as touchy as Two-Tone is...I'm more confused than anything else; I mean, Mum and Dad kept all that within the family, so how did Adelina hear about it?" Daphne looked at her brother quizzically. "As far as I understand it, Mum and Adelina lost touch when Two-Tone was the thing...this is vexing..."

"Just chill; our orders are to ignore her, so...do it." Daniel scoffed.

"Yes, boss," he said playfully as he returned to his story, much to Daphne's relief.

Alexa and Phoenix stood up and began to take hold of the empty plates, mug and bottles. Ryder stood up and stretched slightly as Alexa and Phoenix made their way to the café van, where they handed the empty crockery over to the owner; the owner happily accepted the items from the courteous pair and thanked them for the patronage as they left. Ryder held onto Jollie as he scurried over to Alexa and Phoenix. Before they returned to the road, however, Alexa looked at her Lucario nervously.

"Ryder? Would you and Jollie mind returning to your Poké Balls now?" Ryder raised an eyebrow.

"How come?"

"I want some alone time with Phoenix," she said honestly. The Charizard looked at her with slight concern.

"I guess so... I mean, granted, we're gonna go back to our balls anyway, but...it's just sooner than I thought it would be, that's all."

"Bun?" Jollie asked as she looked up at Ryder suspiciously.

"I'm just saying," Ryder shrugged. Alexa took a Poké Ball and a Luxury Ball from her belt bag and held them in front of her, the central buttons facing the two Pokémon.

"Thanks for understanding, Ryder," Alexa said unconvincingly as two beams of red light fired from and absorbed Ryder and Jollie back into their respective Poké Balls. Phoenix's concern grew slightly more as Alexa placed the two capsules back into her belt bag and walked towards the long Driftveil Drawbridge. Phoenix eventually walked directly alongside his Trainer, keeping his ocean blue eyes on her the entire trek.

"Rrrrrrrgh?"

"Sorry I worried you...but...I want to talk about Harvey's proposal with you properly..." Phoenix huffed, unintentionally releasing a small orange and yellow ember that ever so slightly burned the steel flooring it fell on.

"Rrrrrghrrrrgh..."

"I know you don't think your opinion matters, but-"

"Rrrgh," Phoenix said insistently.

"...okay...since you won't give me your opinion...do you have anything else you can give me regarding the idea?" Alexa asked nervously. Phoenix smiled kindly as he nodded.

"Rrrrrgh, hrrrrrrgh...rrrrrgh, rrrrrrgh..." Alexa's eyes widened in shock.

"A literal fresh start, you mean?" she asked, almost in horror. Phoenix's confirming nod only surprised her further. "A-Are you sure? I-I mean, you've been by my side through all four of my past travels, it-"

"Rrrrgh-rrrrrrgh," Phoenix said reassuringly. "Rrrrrgh-hrrrrrrgh..."

"So...I go to a new region alone...and get a new starter Pokémon...and travel with a clean slate?" Phoenix nodded at Alexa's understanding. "You think a clean slate will help?" Phoenix nodded again.

"Rrgh, rrrrrgh," Phoenix added as he shrugged.

"Up to me, huh..." Alexa looked up at the sky thoughtfully; she saw the sunset gradually giving way to the inevitable night sky – the contrast between the gentle orange and the midnight blue in the sky above her was as beautiful as the warming mix of a sunset's orange and yellow colouration. "...one thing at a time, though...I'll try not to think about it any further until the current issues have been sorted...starting with Keith." Phoenix affectionately ran his claws through Alexa's hair as his smile grew warmer.

"Rrrrrrrrgh..." Alexa looked up at her oldest ally with a gentle smile.

"Thanks, Phoenix...for trusting me." Phoenix lowered his head to Alexa's and gently licked her cheek lovingly.

"Rrrgh... Rrrrrrrgh..."

"I know...I love you, too." She pulled out the shineless Poké Ball from her belt bag. "Phoenix?"

"Hrrgh?"

"Wish me luck, okay?" she asked as she looked up at her Charizard with a sunny smile. Phoenix chuckled.

"Rrrgh-hrrgh!" he nodded. Alexa held the Poké Ball towards him as its light returned him to its sanctuary. After returning the Poké Ball to her bag, Alexa resumed her walk across the bridge alone.

Hayden and Lily walked side by side along the peaceful meadow with many an infant Bug and Grass type Pokémon frolicking in the tall grass, with Cheryl safe inside her Poké Ball after their arrival. Lily was at almost complete serenity with her surroundings, though Hayden still appeared slightly on edge; he rubbed the back of his head anxiously.

"So, uh...you know what we're doing?"

"I thought we'd have dinner at The White Swanna tonight; it's a quiet establishment, which is ideal for us right now," Lily explained.

"Yeah, I-I suppose so," Hayden agreed waveringly. Lily turned towards him in confusion.

"What? Did you want to do something else?" she asked curiously. Hayden shook his head.

"It's not that, it's...it's Lexie..." Lily sighed as she tried not to roll her eyes.

"I know you're worried, Hayden – I'd be lying if I said I wasn't – but the best thing you can do for her right now is to let her have her space and let her sort her problems out." Hayden sighed as he looked up at the slowly transitioning sky overhead. He suddenly looked at Lily in confusion when she held onto his arm and smiled at him. "Aw, c'mon, Tiger! They have soup...!" she said temptingly. Hayden stared at her with perplexity until he huffed a small laugh and smiled.

"As long as it isn't pumpkin soup." Lily laughed.

"I shouldn't think so, darling. But, if it's tomato, I'll join you!" Hayden laughed as he freed his arm from his wife's grip and wrapped it around her shoulders.

"Are you kidding me? Your homemade tomato soup might as well be an elixir! It's a Mewsend in winter!"

"Sun-dried tomatoes do make a difference," Lily said, almost pridefully. Hayden kissed the top of her head as Village Bridge and The White Swanna came into view; he and Lily looked at the graceful painting of a Swanna in the middle of a lake hanging from the public house as it drew closer to them. Despite the prospect of a more uplifting evening, Hayden's smile waned as his worries and regrets plagued his mind.

Keenan lay perfectly still on the hotel sofa with Iara curled up comfortably on his chest. The both of them were sound asleep, Keenan snoring very quietly, until the sudden sound of an energetic musical tone from his Xtransceiver woke them up with a startled yelp. Iara panted heavily as she patted her chest with her paw while Keenan looked at who had interrupted their nap; he accepted the call from Troy and rubbed one of his eyes as Troy's face appeared on the central screen.

"Troy, what the heck...?!" Troy smiled sheepishly.

"Heh, sorry; didn't mean to scare ya! How are things over there?" he wondered. Iara moved over to Keenan's shoulder as the boy lost his smile, much to Troy's puzzlement.

"...not good; Alex...she ran off about an hour or so ago..."

"For real?!" Troy asked in shock. "Where to?"

"I guess to Driftveil; Dad exploded in Keith's face, but Uncle Harvey suggesting she travel again had the same effect on Alex...and she left. It was ugly..." Troy exhaled silently as his smile died completely.

"Sounds like I'm not the only one who had a bad day..."

"Huh?"

"Half of my Daycare Pokémon turned against the other half for no reason! But, worse yet, some of my Pokémon – and even the twins' ghost pair – turned against us!" Keenan was alarmed.

"How?! Uh, w-why, even!?"

"No clue and no clue...but what's weird is the Pokémon that turned can't remember doing so...not even Lucy. It's a mystery, but everything worked out in the end, thanks to Piper."

"Yeah, I-I heard she evolved...I'm happy for Peggy, I-I really am." Though Keenan certainly felt otherwise. "...Troy?"

"What's the matter?" Troy asked with concern.

"...I'm scared..."

"Of what?"

"Alex not coming back... I-I mean...she and Dad have such a huge rift between them right now, and I feel bad because I think it was my asking for her input on something involving Adelina that...that instigated the whole thing..." Iara patted Keenan's shoulder comfortingly.

"Want me to check on her?" Keenan shook his head.

"N-No, thanks; Mum said to just leave her alone. But...thanks for the offer." Troy smiled joyfully.

"Let me know when she's done being a runaway; I can catch up with her then and see what I can do to help the poor lass out." Keenan finally cheered up, much to Iara's delight.

"That'd be great!"

"Por!" Iara nodded in agreement.

"Thanks, Troy, you're great!" Troy scoffed and smirked.

"No need to tell me twice!" he winked.

In her office, Naomi and Harvey were sitting opposite one another in front of her desk, each holding a freshly brewed beverage mug in their hands. Naomi's Flareon sat next to her with a paw on her lap, while Keith's Sawsbuck, Buizel and Pichu stayed quiet in one corner of the office, keeping themselves to themselves as they couldn't help but worry for their partner. Jason became increasingly disturbed, much like his Trainer, as Naomi heard Harvey's news.

"S-So...Hayden just...lashed out?" Harvey nodded as he stared at his translucent green tea; not even the minty aroma wafting from the beverage lifted his spirits.

"He'd heard about the fight between Keith and Alexa...but something else was bothering him, I could see it in his eyes..."

"What was it?"

"Hell if I know, he wouldn't tell me," Harvey said as he blew some of the minty steam off of the mug. "Needless to say, that brother of mine was a time bomb...and Keith was unfortunate enough to bear the full force of the explosion, the poor lad." He took a slow drink from his mug.

"No wonder he was so upset...the poor lad indeed... I can't imagine how hard that must have been for Alexa..."

"That on top of my disgraceful timing made her storm out of the hotel entirely," Harvey said sadly as he lowered his mug.

"What do you mean?"

"Before the Contest, I came up with the idea that she could travel again to get her confidence back. The only problem was I waited too long for it to reach her ears...she only found out over an hour ago, AFTER her Zoroark ended up in surgery..."

"Is Xavier all right?" Naomi asked carefully.

"No clue; I haven't heard anything from anyone about it since Hayden first informed us. But, needless to say, Alexa was in a terrible state...and my pushing my idea in her face too late made things even worse..."

"I'm sure she'll come to realise your good intentions," Naomi said comfortingly as she leaned forward and placed a hand on his knee.

"That doesn't mean to say I was right to neglect it for as long as I did... I don't care if she likes or even hates the idea – that's up to her; all I'm concerned about is making amends."

"You'll get your chance..." Harvey looked over at her sadly.

"You really think so?"

"I do. I do because...I'm getting my chance right now...uh, t-to make amends with you, I mean, I-I didn't do anything to-" Harvey laughed as he held onto her hand.

"I know what you mean. Thanks, Naomi; I'm glad I have you on my side." Naomi placed her half-empty mug on her desk as she held her other hand over Harvey's.

"I'm glad we're talking again...I really missed you..."

"Ditto." Harvey was confused when Naomi suddenly stood up from her seat.

"Fancy something from the vending machine? Even on a good day, I'm a frequent visitor." Harvey chuckled as he stood up and placed his mug on Naomi's desk.

"Some things never change," he said as he walked with her as they left the office. Jason quickly followed the couple.

Harvey and Naomi arrived at the main reception just in time to see Alexa hurry inside and head straight to the reception desk. But Alexa had no chance to ask the receptionist anything.

"Alexa!" The girl turned to her aunt and uncle upon hearing his call. She was surprised to see Harvey walking over to her, but she was still a little resentful at the same time.

"Uncle Harvey!" She then spotted Naomi walking alongside him and felt somewhat awkward. "A-Aunt Naomi, I, uh...it-it's good to see you."

"You, too, dear," Naomi smiled kindly. "How can we help you?" Alexa took a deep breath.

"I'm here to speak to Keith," she replied firmly. "Where's his room?"

"I can just call-"

"Tell her, Naomi," Harvey said quickly. Naomi looked up at him with alarm.

"Harvey!"

"Trust me; you don't want the grief." Naomi looked towards Alexa again; she looked firm, like she was on a mission she was adamant about accomplishing, but she also appeared slightly impatient. Naomi softened her demeanour, hoping it would make Alexa feel more at ease.

"...sixth floor, room 109."

"Thanks, Aunt Naomi," Alexa said courteously. She began her dash to the elevator, but Harvey carefully grabbed her arm as she passed him.

"Hang on a sec, Chick."

"Hm?" Alexa looked up at him with puzzlement.

"I'm...I'm sorry we've been negligent lately." Alexa gave him a slight scowl.

"With all due respect...now isn't the time," she said as she reclaimed her arm from her uncle. With nothing further to dignify him with, Alexa resumed her sprint. Harvey and Naomi watched her in silence until the elevator doors closed behind her.

"I see what you mean."

"Eeyep; she's not a happy Buneary right now, and with good reason," Harvey said as he placed both hands on his hips. However, he soon smiled hopefully. "But here's hoping that hers won't be the only one to become a beautiful Lopunny."

"Ha; cute," Naomi chuckled. Jason shrugged with indifference.

"Flare."

Keith exited his warm and slightly steamy en suite, fully clothed once more and with a white towel slapped on the top of his head. He felt far more relaxed as he began to carefully rub his hair dry with the towel, walking around the room as he did so. He stopped walking, however, when he heard knocking at his door, but he continued rubbing his hair.

"Keith?"

Suddenly, Keith pulled the towel down from his head, revealing his misshapen spiky crimson hair, as he stared at the door with immense shock; that was Alexa's voice.

 _To be continued..._


	40. Chapter 40

**Chapter Thirty Nine – Confiding pt II**

"I-It's me, I...I need to talk to you." Keith cautiously approached the door as Alexa continued to communicate through it and looked through the peep hole; sure enough, he saw the young blonde girl awkwardly looking away from the door and holding her arm as she awaited any kind of response from him. The sound of Keith pushing the door downwards almost startled Alexa as he opened the door; Alexa felt slightly unnerved when she saw the resentful look in his eyes.

"Naomi gave you my room number, didn't she?" he presumed bluntly.

"Y-Yeah," Alexa said quietly. "I-I can call back tomorrow if-" Much to her surprise, Keith moved aside, allowing her access inside the room. Alexa gave Keith a courteous nod of gratitude as she silently entered the abode; looking at Driftveil Star's signature interior design made Alexa feel slightly at ease until Keith closed the door behind her – then she began to feel awkward again.

"Go on, then; what do you want to talk about?" Keith asked grumpily as he simply stared at the closed door.

"...I'm...I'm sorry-"

"Your Dad got you to grovel for him or something?!" Keith snapped as he spun around and glared daggers at Alexa. Despite her back being turned against her host, Alexa felt every last one of them piercing her soul.

"...no." Keith's violent look swiftly turned into bewilderment. "Don't get me wrong...I want to apologise for what he did...but that's his cross to bear...not mine." Alexa turned ever so slightly to her right; just enough for her to see Keith through the corner of her eye whilst still avoiding direct eye contact with him, still picking up some anger from him. "I'm here for us, not him." Keith huffed a small sarcastic laugh.

"Us? After your Dad's performance this afternoon, what makes you think he'll LET there be an us anymore?!" he asked interrogatively. Alexa held her tongue as she turned away from him. Infuriated with her lack of response, Keith scoffed nastily. "Yeah, that makes me feel SO much better, Alexa, thanks a bloody bunch!" Alexa continued to hold her tongue; she refused to instigate another heated debate that would end with her leaving the premises in tears – she didn't want to take any risks. "I mean, thanks to your inability to open up to your Mom and Dad, I may as well be an accomplice to you keeping the Sinnoh incident away from them!" he shouted angrily, but Alexa felt even more disturbed by how tearful he sounded at the same time; she could feel his fear and she sympathised.

"...I'm...I'm sorry I got you into that situation," she apologised softly. Keith huffed as he folded his arms, impatiently waiting for her to turn around and face him like he felt she should. However, no matter how long he intended to wait, she wouldn't yield; the only thing she did was hold onto both of her arms instead of just the one. "I...I wanted to see if you were okay after-"

"Okay?!" Now Keith felt livid. "Alexa, your Dad had a look in his eye that was so violent that it'd put JORDAN'S to shame; WHAT MAKES YOU THINK I'D BE OKAY AFTER SOMETHING LIKE THAT?!" he roared furiously. Alexa began to shiver; Keith's rage frightened her, but its reminder to her father's fury was what distressed her further. Seeing her quivering where she stood sent shock waves through Keith as he suddenly realised his attitude towards her. "I-I'm sorry, Alexa, I-I'm just-"

"I know..." Alexa's surprisingly calm response shocked Keith to the core. "...of course you're not okay...it was stupid of me to presume otherwise..." Noticing that Alexa was being more submissive than he knew her to be, Keith grew concerned for her. He sighed silently as he suddenly spotted the electric kettle on the table in front of Alexa.

"...w-would you like a drink?" he asked, hoping to relieve the tense atmosphere around them.

"...thanks...but no, thanks...I actually had something before I came here..."

Hayden and Lily sat opposite one another at a small table in a secluded corner of the quiet pub restaurant. Despite the building's name, the interior consisted of dark and warm colours, such as orange, red and brown. Although there were plenty of tables to accommodate a wedding, only two or three other tables were occupied by other patrons. Lining the walls were numerous watercolour paintings of several Unova native Pokémon in wooden frames that almost looked antique; though most of the paintings were of a Swanna – or a herd of them, other paintings included a Deerling in autumn and a silhouetted Archeops in flight. On the table Hayden and Lily sat at was a small ceramic pot of condiment sachets that were also on the other tables in the restaurant, including the vacant ones. Lily had a glass of orange juice on the wooden coaster near her, while Hayden had a glass of rosé wine that he held in his fingers. Lily looked around at the quiet restaurant with a smile.

"See? I told you it's quiet in here."

"Yeah..." Hayden just stared at his rose pink drink sadly as he ever so slightly and slowly swirled it in his hand. Lily sighed; she knew the pink wine was reminding him of Alexa.

"Hayden...I know it's bothering you, but-"

"Can we not discuss this now?" Hayden asked as he finally placed the glass on the coaster next to him. "I'd rather not let it ruin the evening if I can help it."

"Oh! Uh...s-sure," Lily smiled. "Whatever you want, Tiger." Hayden sighed with relief as he looked at the liquid sitting still in the motionless glass with a tender smile. Lily took a few moments to look through the main menu on the table underneath the condiments pot, but, when she returned the menu to its original position, she saw Hayden hadn't moved his gaze from his light fuchsia beverage and chuckled. "What are you thinking about?"

"Happier times," Hayden answered gently, still carrying his sentimental smile. Lily recreated his smile.

"Looks to me like you're remembering the day Lexie was born; that look on your face is the same as when you first held her." Hayden huffed a small laugh as his smile grew.

"Yeah... ...she...she's one of the best things that have happened to me..."

"No need to second guess what the other ones are," Lily jested, despite her warm smile. Hayden suddenly faced his wife squarely in the eye.

"Do you remember the first time you took her to the Goldenrod Department Store?" Lily came close to breaking out in laughter.

"I doubt I'd ever forget that; she tried vinegar for the first and last time – her reaction was priceless!"

"What was it she called it again? Stinky yuck-water or something?"

"Smelly yuck-water," Lily corrected. Hayden began laughing.

"Oh-ho, yeah, now I remember! ...that was adorable."

"Yeah...for an insult," Lily added. She and Hayden laughed for a few moments until Hayden's laughter died, closely followed by his smile; Lily hadn't noticed as she took hold of her orange juice to take a drink after her laughing halted.

"...hey, Lily..."

"Hm?" Lily returned her glass to its coaster as she looked over at Hayden.

"Do you think I'll be able to make things right with her? Alexa." Lily smiled lovingly at him.

"I do." Her confident reply confused Hayden. "I know better than anyone that the two of you have that father-daughter connection in spades; I'd be willing to bet my hair that Alexa wants to make amends with you as much as you want to make things right with her – just give her time and space." Though Lily's use of the words time and space in the same sentence reminded Hayden of how and why he fell out with Alexa in the first place, her reassurance was barely enough to settle his anxiety.

"Okay, but..."

"But?"

"Don't bet your hair on it."

"Why not?"

"I love your hair." Lily laughed.

"Oh, stop it, you!" Hayden grinned cheekily at her, but, the very minute Lily's attention was off of him, he glanced at his glass of rosé with a look of lingering regret.

More relaxed than when Troy contacted him out of the blue, Keenan lay back on the sofa, consequently allowing Iara to return to her original position on his chest. At first, the tiny Vaporeon was content until she noticed Keenan harbouring a recurring sense of guilt, despite him gently stroking the back of her head.

"Iara..?"

"Poreon?"

"I AM to blame, aren't I?" Iara had no reason to guess what Keenan was blaming himself for, but frowned all the same.

"Por..."

"I didn't listen to my sister... If I had, then Xavier... ...then none of this would have happened."

"Vap-or-eon," Iara said, shaking her head.

"Don't I, though? All of this started the very minute I asked her to look at a dumb photo!" Keenan said in frustration. "...I shouldn't have even looked into it myself...!"

"Por?"

"I-It wasn't my place...but I... ...it IS my fault, isn't it?" Iara kept silent as she decided between giving him the harsh answer he wanted or a white lie to settle his nerves. Eventually, Iara appeared reluctant as she gave him a nod.

"Poreon..." Keenan sighed as he accepted the truth.

"I knew it...thanks for being honest..." Iara shuffled closer to Keenan as she nuzzled his cheek lovingly.

"Por, Vaporeon, por-poreon," she added comfortingly. Keenan chuckled with amusement.

"A light at the end of Rock Tunnel? Seriously?"

"Por? Vaporeon, poreon?" Iara giggled as Keenan petted her head.

"I know Rock Tunnel's dark, but the proper idiom would've sufficed!" he laughed. "But thanks...that made me feel better..."

"Poreon!" Iara rejoiced. She suddenly looked at the boy with worry. "Por...por-Vaporeon?"

"I dunno how I'm going to set things right...but I'll find a way..."

Keith wasn't sure if he should approach Alexa and make her feel more at ease or if his good intent would make her flee like a frightened Bunnelby. Conflicted, Keith stayed in place as he rubbed the back of his neck nervously and looked at Alexa, though with her back still turned against him; his only consolation was that she'd stopped shaking in place.

"...I-I, um..." Keith sighed sadly. "I can't imagine how hard today's been for you...I'm...I'm sorry I couldn't be there to support you."

"You needn't be; I asked you not to. ...but...telling my parents about the Team Galactic thing...it felt even worse than the incident itself..." Keith raised a confused eyebrow until Alexa finally turned around to face him; the look of melancholy in her eyes was alarmingly potent that it stunned him. "Because it was I who tore my family apart with my deception..."

"Alexa-"

"I'm a horrible liar, Keith...but Team Galactic...I think that was the best lie I've ever told..."

"To your Mom and Dad?" Keith asked carefully.

"...to them...to myself...either way, its ramifications hurt like nobody's business...I led my parents to believe that, excluding the Pokémon League, my travels through Sinnoh went without incident..." Keith began to feel sorry for Alexa. "At the same time...I led myself to believe that I'd gotten over it..." Alexa relaxed her stance, but she somehow looked completely submissive, much to Keith's concern. "...my Dad was right...I was reckless..."

"...m-maybe it'd be a better idea if you sorted things out with your Mom and Dad first," Keith suggested gently.

"After the way I left? I don't think it'd be that simple."

"What do you mean?" Alexa held her arms out, as if to signal Keith to look at her entire being, which he did.

"...I...I just packed some basic supplies and left, leaving some hurtful words behind...everything in my pack is all I have... ...I...I was such a brat." Keith was alarmed.

"I-I don't think that's-"

"I left proclaiming my Dad to be the reason I decided to run away, Keith; if that's not being a brat...then I don't know what brat means..."

"...y-you should still try."

"I...I'm not ready to face that yet...not after the way I behaved as I left... ...heck, I'm not even sure if I'm ready to sort things out between US anymore..." Keith felt torn.

"I'm...I'm sorry I didn't make things easier for you..."

"...honestly, I...I should have expected such a cold reception...I deserved it after how I treated my Mum and Dad...I even ignored my little brother's concern for me...!" Keith felt himself tearing up.

"T-That's no reason not to try...!" Alexa faced him in confusion; she could tell that he was unusually keen for her to try and save her family ties, but what puzzled her the most...were his tears.

"Keith?"

"At least you HAVE a family you can salvage!" he cried as he looked directly at her, his tears finally trickling from his eyes. Keith's words horrified and devastated Alexa.

Lily sighed with sheer delight as she lowered her newly emptied soup mug from her face and placed it on the plate her slices of buttered bread occupied prior to consumption.

"Could use a little basil, but you can tell the tomatoes they used were fresh." Confused and concerned by Hayden's lack of response, she looked over at him, only to find that he barely touched any of his soup or his slices of bread, which looked completely untouched. "Aw, honey...don't you like it?"

"It's fine, but... ...I just don't have much of an appetite, I guess..." If Lily hadn't placed her soup mug down, she would have dropped it as an overpowering sense of deja vu coursed through her mind, nearly petrifying her.

"...Hayden...that's EXACTLY what Alexa said the night after she and Keith fell out...w-word for word..." Hayden ever so slightly raised his head, making his submissive demeanour clearer to his frightened wife as he sat opposite her in silence. "...Colin was right...y-you and Alexa...you really ARE so much alike...and it IS frightening..." Hayden showed no reaction to Lily's observation; he didn't even look like he even twitched! "...l-let's get out of here and talk about this, okay?" With a quiet sigh as her only response, Lily hailed for one of the pub's waiting staff and requested the bill; despite the premature request, the young waiter nodded compliantly as he left the table. As he left, Lily kept her eye on Hayden; to her horror, she was starting to fear for him.

 _To be continued..._


	41. Chapter 41

**Chapter Forty – Confiding pt III**

Alexa stared speechlessly at Keith as he conflicted with his despair and his budding infuriation, pacing around a small area of the carpet and running one hand through his vibrant and freshly washed crimson hair.

"...y-you...you have NO idea how lucky you are to have the family that you have!" Alexa tried her very hardest to understand why Keith was fixated on her making peace with her family, but, alas, the reason she sought failed to reach her understanding, which worried her further.

"...Keith, I-"

"And to risk losing all of that because you're scared!?" Keith bellowed in frustration. Alexa winced at his blooming rage. "That's what's pissing me off right now! You've been blessed with this wonderful family, yet you've put that at risk!" Alexa looked up at him in shock.

"B-But you told me to-"

"I told you that you should tell them, Alexa; I DIDN'T TELL YOU TO JUMP SHIP IN THE MIDDLE OF IT ALL!" Alexa withdrew as Keith raised his voice at her, feeling a familiar sense of fear returning to her; she held her arms as she tried not to succumb to the sensation. "...I bet it feels nice..."

"Huh?" Alexa glanced at him in confusion and, to her surprise, found that he looked envious.

"To be the apple of your Dad's eye...your Mom's little angel...the influential older sibling...bet that feels nice," he grumbled as he looked slightly away from her. Alexa lowered her head shamefully.

"...if the apple's tainted..." Keith faced Alexa with perplexity. "...the angel's fallen...and the influence is bad...then, yeah...I'm all of those things... ...and...my Dad hates apples..." Keith felt hurt, hearing Alexa turning his hidden compliments into something much more morbid than they ought to have been, but having heard how negatively she thought of Hayden hurt him even more.

"...but...you have something special with him, Alexa...!"

"Keith-"

"I've seen the way the two of you interact...why would you let that fall into ruin...?!" he asked tearfully. Alexa felt even more lost than before.

"...y-you're scared of my Dad...but...what we had makes you jealous...?!" Keith felt mildly offended by Alexa's use of the past tense, which implied that the bond Alexa had with Hayden had ceased to be. "I-I don't understand..."

"Of course you don't, Alexa! Y-Your Dad actually BOTHERS to give you the time of day!" Alexa was startled by Keith's sudden outcry, but she began to feel guilty about her own outburst again; she held onto her arms for comfort, though doing so proved fruitless. "Why can't you see that he loves you?!" Alexa clenched both of her arms so tightly she felt her nails almost scratching her skin.

"B-Because I'm scared he hates me!" she cried. Her answer only served to infuriate and enrage Keith further.

"It's not YOU he hates! It's what you DID that he hates!" Silence quickly dawned on the room as both teens fought against their tears, seeking comfort from themselves rather than each other like they used to do.

"...a-and how long I took...t-to tell him..." Alexa finally whispered in a pathetic and feeble little voice. Despite how quiet she was, Keith had heard her loud and clear.

"...a-and what I did to you..." he added in a voice just as mousy. Alexa dared to look up at him in confusion, but Keith hid his eyes from her under the shadows of his fringe. "D-Did you hear what he was yelling at me..?"

"N-No..." Though Alexa wasn't sure if she actually wanted to know.

"...h-he thought I destroyed you..." Alexa showed no reaction to Keith's reply; having seen his explosive anger point blank, she felt he might as well have demolished her entirely. "...t-thank Arceus your Mom stepped in..." Alexa looked up at Keith in confusion; she picked up a sense of longing from him when he brought her mother into the topic of conversation. She simply stared at him, not knowing what she could say, if anything, to lift his spirits, though such a feat would have been difficult while her own spirits were starting to plummet all over again.

"...I-I..."

"...I miss that... ...having a Mom around..." Now Alexa had a vague idea for why she felt Keith's yearning.

"...w-where is she...?" Alexa asked delicately. "...d-do you know...?" She felt horrid when Keith tilting his head even lower than it was.

"...I should..." Alexa was about to protest against him finishing his sentence. "S-She...she died when I was seven..." Alexa felt deeply heartbroken for him, but, at the same time, a hint of understanding started to eat away at her; she began to see why Keith was fixated on her reconnecting with her family.

"I-I-I...I-I'm so sorry...!" Keith showed no reaction to her heart-felt sympathy. "...a-and your Dad...?" Keith scoffed.

"What Dad...?" he asked tearfully. The horror Alexa felt seemed stronger than before.

"Y-You're an orphan...?!"

"...felt like it sometimes..." Alexa was lost. "L-Like I said...your Dad bothers to acknowledge you; mine...mine didn't..."

"What...?!" The very thought of a parent being completely negligent with their own child was unheard of for Alexa, having a father who put his family above his own enterprise. "...h-how...?!"

"H-He worked long hours...a-as an electrician...but...e-even with my Mom around, he... ...l-looking back on it, I-I'm surprised he knew I was even born..."

"B-But...I don't understand..."

"Long hours...I...I was in bed when he came home, so...yeah..." Alexa stared sadly at Keith as he fought against his tears, which threatened to slip through his tightly closed eyelids as he regaled her of his estranged family background. "...h-he gained custody after my Mom died...but...we-we only grew further apart..." Alexa held a hand close to her lips in disbelief and devastation.

"...Keith-"

"I-I don't want that for you...!" Keith said sorrowfully, his voice starting to crack. Alexa would have felt mortified if she wasn't already experiencing half a dozen other conflicting emotions. "...I-I've...I've seen how close you and your family are..." Alexa dared to take a single step closer to him. "...yeah, it-it's no lie that I wish I had that with my family, but...I...I can't; it-it's too late for me..." Alexa choked back her sobs. "...y-you still have a chance..."

"Huh...?!"

"...talk to your Dad...!" Keith said, almost pleadingly. "...b-before what you have is lost forever...!" Now Alexa fully understood Keith's obsession with her salvaging her familial bond, emphatically with Hayden. Though the insight only made her guilt even heavier for her; her tears began to slowly drip down her face.

"...K-Keith...!"

"...I..." Alexa could hardly hear Keith's voice; he was completely lost in his emotional pain. He sat down on the bed and buried his face in his fists...as he began to cry. Without even a speck of hesitation, Alexa hurried over to him, quickly removing her belt bag from her waist and tossing it behind her as she dashed towards the bed. She virtually launched herself onto the bed, kneeling slightly behind him as she gently pulled him towards her, resting his head just above her chest. The very instant she felt Keith wrapping his arms around her and clinging to her clothes, Alexa felt her own sobs returning to her; the overpowering anguish and heartache Keith was expressing made her empathise with him as well as sympathise...and, for once, she was experiencing exactly how Keith felt in all the times he coddled her in her times of emotional vulnerability. She ever so slightly tightened her grip on him as she rested her cheek on his head and cradled him while he wept.

"...I-I'll do it...! ...I-I'll talk to my Dad...!" From the comfort of her bosom, Keith glanced up at her with watery eyes. "...I...I-I know how much my family means to you...a-and I... ...I-I don't want to lose it either...!" Keith closed his eyes as he cried into her chest.

"...Alexa-"

"Shhhhhh..." Alexa slowly and lovingly stroked the top of his head; his hair felt as soft as velvet as it ran through her fingers, while her soft touch seemed to settle his sorrow with each stroke. "...it-it's all right...I'm here..." With her soothing, albeit somewhat shaky, voice added to her soft strokes, Keith's sobbing was ultimately extinguished; even then, he continued to feel Alexa's fingers gently sliding across the top of his head. During the calming silence, Keith could hear Alexa's heartbeat; it was slow, but steady. He began to wonder if this was how Alexa felt whenever she was the one nestled in his embraces; warm and cosy, yet secure in the arms of a supportive lover. For the very first time, he had an idea of what his cuddles felt like...and understood why they never failed to put a smile back on Alexa's face. His grip on Alexa softened as he slowly lifted himself from her chest and, for the first time since he invited her into the room, established eye contact with her; both of their eyes were sore from their tears.

"...thank you..." Keith said softly, in a low and gentle whisper.

"...for what?" Alexa asked, matching his tone of voice. Keith gently raised a hand and began to pull some of her golden hair away from her face to get a much better view of her face; he smiled lovingly as he felt her smooth complexion against his fingertips.

"...being here..." Alexa raised her own hand to delicately wipe away what tears Keith had left from his eyes as she additionally matched his smile.

"...w-why wouldn't I be...?" she asked quietly.

All of a sudden, their smiles faded as they stared into each other's eyes, their hands halted and almost hovering over their cheeks. Keith, however, was the first to move; his hand gently rested on her slightly damp cheek. At the same time, Alexa's arm went limp; her hand slipped away from his cheek. They felt their hearts beginning to race as they gradually drew closer to one another, their eyes closing lightly as their lips were reunited once more. As soon as they made that first kiss, Keith found himself unable to remove himself, nor was Alexa able to push him away from her; rather, they embraced the warm and tender atmosphere around them as, steadily, their passion grew stronger. Alexa wrapped her arms around Keith as she fell backwards onto the bed, while Keith loomed over her, using one hand to stroke his lover's silky smooth hair.

The darkness of the night had almost completely dominated the Unovan sky by the time Hayden and Lily made their way near the centre of the Village Bridge and leaned against the wooden railing. Lily looked up at the glittering stars that were beginning to shine in the sky above, while Hayden looked down at the stars' reflection in the river below...sadly.

"I'm...I'm sorry I ruined the evening..."

"It's not ruined, Tiger...it's just on pause, that's all," Lily said comfortingly. She tried to admire the twinkling lights above her, but the feelings she felt in the restaurant tormented her. "I'm...I'm sorry I-" Her attention was suddenly drawn to Hayden when she heard something from him she hadn't heard in years; his sobs. Hayden held a hand over his eyes, but his tears trickled down his face for Lily to see. "Aw, Hayden...!" Lily shuffled slightly closer to him as she placed a hand on his shoulder and used her other hand to carefully draw him closer to her. However, not even a tender kiss on the top of his head could ease his woes.

"...I-I...I thought she trusted me...!"

"...she does-" Hayden sharply pulled himself away from her loving hold and confronted her, much to her disarray.

"So why didn't she tell me a-about ANYTHING she told us...?!" he asked despairingly. Lily worried for her emotional husband.

"She was scared to..."

"B-But-"

"Not of you, Hayden...of what she wa-" Lily halted herself as what she was about to say reminded her of those few moments prior to the crushing truth of Alexa's travels through Sinnoh finally made itself known to her. "...needed to tell us..." Her answer, though momentarily interrupted by a thoughtful silence, crushed Hayden further.

"...I-I... ...n-now she's...she... Oh, Lexie...!" Hayden returned to the bridge railings as he hid his eyes in the heels of his hands as his sobbing steadily returned to him. Needless to say, seeing her husband of all people in such a vulnerable state saddened Lily. "...what have I done to you...?! ...my little Lexie...!" Lily carefully walked over to Hayden and ran her fingers through his well-groomed brunette hair.

"...you were hurt..."

"...t-that didn't mean I had to hurt HER!" Hayden cried as, for a fleeting moment, he pulled his hands away from his eyes. He almost slapped his hands back onto his forehead, his fingers slightly pushed into his fringe.

"...you couldn't help how you felt..." Lily appeared reluctant to resume her sentence. "...yes, you could have handled the pain better than you did-"

"Didn't..." Hayden said abruptly. "...I-I didn't handle it, I-I took it out on Lexie...!"  
"...but the revelations were hard to swallow...even for me," Lily said sadly, concluding the sentence Hayden interrupted. Hayden gritted his teeth as he tried, and failed, to hold back his tears.

"...Keith k-knew before we did...!"

"Aw, honey...!" Lily once again took hold of Hayden in her doting embrace. "Sometimes, it's easier to confide in someone outside the family... ...you know that." One of Hayden's arms suddenly dropped onto the railing.

"...so...I-I felt betrayed...for nothing...?" Lily began to stroke Hayden's hair, though it proved ineffective in cheering him up, much to her chagrin.

"I can understand why you'd feel that way...but trust has nothing to do with it; Lexie was just... ...it...it was like Keenan said...she was so scared of what she told us...like it was only a recent event..." Hayden felt himself unable to contain his growing despair.

"...I...I-I should have listened to you...!" Lily looked at him helplessly as he fought a losing battle against his anguish. "...I-I shouldn't have pushed her... ...e-even worse...I-I attacked Keith for nothing...now I'm scared she hates me...!"

"Hayden-"

"She ran away because of ME, Lily!" Hayden cried as he suddenly glared at his startled wife; though his demeanour was of anger, his eyes only showed his turmoil. "I-I felt her hatred when she pointed the finger at me, all because of how I treated her and Keith!"

"You can still fix things, Tiger," Lily said sweetly as she wiped one of his many tears from his eyes. Hayden wanted to believe her, but his guilt prevented him from feeling any sense of hope.

"...you still think that...?" he asked sadly as he looked away from Lily, staring soullessly at the distant reflection of the bridge beneath him.

"I know that you'll give it a damn good try if Alexa's really that important to you," Lily said reassuringly. Hayden quickly looked at Lily with a small glint of frustration in his eyes.

"Of COURSE I want to try!" he yelled. He stared sorrowfully at the river running beneath the bridge again. "...I...I'm just...I'm afraid that I've driven her away for good...!" The pessimism Hayden presented gave Lily cause to fear for him once again.

"Hayden..."

"...w-what I did to her..." Hayden looked up at the sky woefully, hoping to find comfort in the stars themselves as opposed to their reflection, but whatever was in his line of sight made no difference; no matter where he looked, his tears refused to cease. "...looking back on it...I...it makes me feel...putrid..."

"...if that's how you feel..." Hayden gave her a slight nod to properly confirm his lowly feelings regarding his earlier behaviour. "...then Alexa's bound to feel even worse than that...they were her tribulations, after all." Hayden looked across the horizon directly in front of him as the afternoon's events played in his mind; if anything remained constant, it was the look of utter trepidation and overwhelming heartbreak in his daughter's eyes, both of which were partly caused by Hayden himself. Knowing what damage he inflicted on his dear daughter pained his own heart as his remorse consumed him. Lily waited anxiously for any response from Hayden and she felt on edge when he lowered his head in shame.

"...you're right..." He choked back more sobs, but didn't bother to hide his face this time. "...I-I'll do it..." Lily was confused, even as Hayden looked up at the brightest star he could find. "...I'll talk to Alexa..." Lily smiled warmly. "I...I don't want her to think she can't confide in us...I-I want her to know...I don't hate her...I love her...!" Lily wrapped her arms around him, prompting Hayden to fling his around her as he held his beloved wife close to him. Resting one hand on the back of her head, Hayden finally found his sought-after comfort. "...I love her, Lily...! ...I love her...!"

"You don't have to tell me, Tiger...you've loved her even before we found out she was a girl..." Hayden breathed a small chuckle as a smile finally returned to his face.

"To be honest...I was hoping she was a girl..." Hayden loosened his cuddle as he looked into Lily's warm hazel eyes before he lightly touched foreheads with her. "...thank you, Petal..."

"...Tiger..."

Before Hayden and Lily could properly relax in the peace and quiet of the night, a sudden flash of light and a thunderous crash behind them alarmed Hayden and frightened Lily; Hayden barely heard his wife's petrified scream as she flung herself into his arms. Hayden looked over at the other side of the bridge in puzzlement; the weather was picturesque – where did the lightning bolt come from?!

 _To be continued..._


	42. Chapter 42

**Chapter Forty One – Nidoqueen**

"What was...?!" Hayden suddenly looked down at Lily as she took deep breaths to calm her nerves. "Lily, are you all right?"

"Y-Yes, I think so," she replied shakily. "But what was that...?" As soon as she liberated herself from Hayden's gentle hold, she and Hayden hurried over to the opposite side of the bridge and looked down at the river below; they saw an extremely infuriated Nidoqueen glaring coldly at a pale and dull orange Crawdaunt as it dove from the water and grabbed the Nidoqueen's neck with its pincer – Lily flinched as the pincer began to squeeze Nidoqueen's throat. "Oh, gosh...!" Hayden looked around both sides of the river and even at the small island near the middle of the water.

"I don't see any Trainers nearby; they might be wild," he said quietly. Nidoqueen gritted her teeth as she slammed her fist, glowing in a bright cyan aura, into Crawdaunt's star-shaped growth. As the Crawdaunt was pushed away from her, the spiked edges of its pincers scratched her neck, leaving a shallow bleeding laceration on either side of her throat. Nidoqueen roared in agony.

"Oh, that poor Nidoqueen...!" To Hayden's confusion, Nidoqueen raised on arm in the air while holding her other hand over her throat. The elevated arm gathered a small amount of static electricity as dark clouds formed overhead; a tremendous lightning bolt soon fell from the cloud with a loud crash of thunder that caused Lily to scream in fright again as she clung to Hayden for safety. Hayden held onto her gently as he watched the Crawdaunt dodging the intense electric attack.

"So Nidoqueen was behind that first lightning bolt..." Hayden looked over at Lily worriedly. "You okay?"

"Y-Yeah...it-it just took me by surprise...again..." Lily watched as the Nidoqueen attempted to sink her fang-like teeth, oozing in a devious purple glow, into the Crawdaunt's shell; Crawdaunt, however, spun around as it avoided the attack, sending the Nidoqueen into the water. "We need to do something!"

"Do you really think we should?" Hayden asked sceptically.

"You just said you don't see any Trainers nearby, didn't you?"

"It's not our fight," Hayden argued.

"Maybe not, but who's to say that battle won't escalate and cause collateral damage?" Lily asked hypothetically. "It could put the bridge and anyone walking across it at risk!"

"Like us?" Hayden asked as Crawdaunt dove into the water in pursuit of the Nidoqueen.

"I'd think so, yes," Lily nodded. Hayden looked at her seriously.

"We'd better do something about it, then." Lily smiled with relief and nodded as she followed Hayden as he ran along the bridge to find a way down to the battle.

Crawdaunt slammed its pincer in Nidoqueen's stomach to launch her out of the water, leapt up after her and slammed her in the shoulder to knock her towards the wire fence of the nearby basketball court. The Crawdaunt then tried to charge towards the wounded Nidoqueen while yellow-orange energy began to veil its entire being.

"REOW!" Out of the blue, a Liepard with three whiskers darted onto the scene and slapped both paws together and releasing a translucent shock wave that ended up crashing into the attacking Crawdaunt. "REOW!"

"Hrrrf!" The collared Houndoom grunted in response to the Liepard's cue and leapt at the flinched Rouge Pokémon and chomped into its pincer; Houndoom then swung the Crawdaunt around him and tossed her to the riverbed on the opposite side of the river as he and Liepard touched the ground. Nidoqueen blinked in bewilderment.

"Well done, Tiffany!" Liepard's ears twitched as she heard Hayden's voice and grinned.

"Good job, Theo!" The Houndoom smirked and huffed proudly upon hearing Lily's praise. Nidoqueen drew her attention to Hayden and Lily as they ran over to their Dark type companions.

"Thanks, Tiff." Tiffany purred lovingly as Hayden gently petted her head. Theo raised his paw as he instigated a handshake with Lily.

"You, too, Theo; thank you."

"Hrrf," Theo nodded.

"N-NIDO!" Nidoqueen roared angrily at Hayden and Lily as the two Dark types were returned to their Poké Balls. "NIDO!" Hayden was less than impressed.

"Oh, you're welcome, my Liepard and my wife's Houndoom only just saved you from a Giga Impact attack," he said sarcastically. Nidoqueen blinked in confusion as Lily laughed nervously.

"Sorry; it's been a hard afternoon for us." She and Hayden suddenly looked towards the river as they heard a splash; Crawdaunt had dived in.

"Great. Just great," Hayden sighed as he took another Poké Ball from his belt bag. "Poppy, this is you, hun!" he called as the white sea lion Pokémon emerged from her Poké Ball and dove into the river. Lily took a pink Poké Ball with a paler pink heart on it from her own belt bag.

"Julia, help Nidoqueen!" she pleaded as her Milk Cow Pokémon happily jumped out of the Love Ball. After giving Lily a quick thumbs up, Julia ran over to the wounded Nidoqueen and lightly touched her shoulder as the black sphere on her tail shone in a soothing blue glow. Crawdaunt jumped out of the river as it slammed its pincer against Poppy's underbelly in an uppercut style punch.

"Poppy! Signal Beam!" Hayden cried. Getting her breath back, Poppy lowered her horn slightly as a rainbow beam fired from its tip. Crawdaunt cried out as the beam struck her tail and crashed into the water. Poppy regained her composure and dived into the water in pursuit. Hayden watched the river anxiously as Lily hurried over to Nidoqueen and Julia.

"Is she all right?" Lily asked.

"Mil," Julia nodded, lightly tapping Nidoqueen's shoulder. She pointed to the very slightly healed cuts on her throat. "Mil-mil."

"Oh, that's good," Lily smiled with relief. Nidoqueen glared at Lily angrily.

"Nido...!"

"We know you didn't ask for our help, but, to be honest, you and that Crawdaunt have the potential to put anyone on the bridge at risk," Lily said seriously. Nidoqueen huffed as she looked away from her. Lily spotted the puncture wounds on Nidoqueen's upper arm, which were still bleeding slightly. "Julia, did you treat those?" Julia looked at the wounded arm in puzzlement.

"M-Mil-mil-mil," she said nervously.

"Then maybe the wounds were too deep...?" Lily speculated as she took hold of her skirt. Hayden looked back at her in confusion when he heard the sound of ripping fabric as Lily tore a thin length of her skirt off. Nidoqueen showed no concern until Lily began wrapping the ripped black fabric around her forearm.

"Nido?!"

"You need to get proper medical attention as soon as possible; for now, this should stop the bleeding..." Hayden smiled warmly at his wife's display of kindness. Nidoqueen appeared reluctant to receive the help Lily was giving her, but the cloth was wrapped around her arm before she could protest. Nidoqueen touched the improvised bandaging lightly.

"...n-nido..." she grumbled quickly. Lily chuckled.

"We all need a little help every now and then." Through the corner of his eye, Hayden saw Poppy leaping out of the water, hoping to avoid the lunging Crawdaunt. Nidoqueen raised her left arm into the air as the static electricity gathering around her claw brought forth dark clouds that hovered over the Crawdaunt; the crustacean Pokémon cried out in pain and agony as the thick burst of electricity crashed on top of her. Lily yelped a little as the electricity made contact with its target while Poppy was lucky she wasn't underneath that bolt.

"Now, Poppy! Signal Beam one more time!" Hayden instructed as he faced the battle in its entirety. Poppy was only too happy to comply as she fired another rainbow beam at the Crawdaunt, but Crawdaunt spun around as it avoided the Dewgong's attack.

"Gong?!"

"She's using Dragon Dance!" Hayden cried in horror. "No wonder she's so nimble! Poppy, watch-" Before Hayden could warn her, Crawdaunt tackled into Poppy with her body surrounded by water. Poppy cried out as she flew towards and into a tree on the opposite side of the river; she fell to the ground unconscious. "Poppy!" To his chagrin, Hayden recalled his defeated Dewgong back into her Poké Ball. Hayden scowled at the Crawdaunt as she fell back into the water. "Stupid Crawdaunt...!"

"Hayden?" Hayden took out a third Poké Ball from his belt bag.

"It's Dragon Dance, Lily; that Crawdaunt is faster and far stronger than she naturally is. This is going to be pretty damn difficult...especially with that Aqua Jet..." Lily stood up and approached her agitated husband.

"We can do this, Hayden."

"I'm not doubting that, of course not; I'm just saying this is going to be a challenge." Nidoqueen watched Hayden and Lily with perplexity before she spotted the Crawdaunt's shadow zooming towards her. She snarled as she forced herself onto her feet and dived towards the shadow, clasping her hands together over her head as she spun around rapidly. Hayden and Lily were caught off guard by Nidoqueen's sudden dive into the water and were gravely alarmed.

"Oh, no, Nidoqueen!" Lily cried. Julia hurried over to the river's edge, but staggered back as Crawdaunt, surrounded by water, knocked Nidoqueen out of the water and effectively tossed her on top of the startled Miltank. While in mid-air, Crawdaunt glared violently at Hayden and Lily and directed her Aqua Jet attack towards Lily, being the one directly in her line of sight.

"LILY!" Hayden dropped his Poké Ball and suddenly grabbed Lily as he dove at her; Crawdaunt very barely missed Hayden's shoulder. Hayden swerved in mid air to ensure he landed on his back, but he yelled in anguish as he not only crashed heavily into the ground, but the gravel scraped his back as he slid along it. Lily lifted herself from his chest and faced him in devastation.

"Hayden!"

"Nnngh...!" Hayden flinched as he tried to sit up. "I'm-I'm okay...! ...agh...!" Lily shook her head in disbelief. Nidoqueen and Julia finally returned to their feet, only to find Hayden and Lily on the ground; Julia in particular was alarmed.

"I-I..." Her frown grew. "That was a bit reckless, don't you think?" Hayden chuckled, particularly at Lily's choice of adjective.

"Heh; I guess today really IS a fine day for hypocrisy." Lily was stunned by Hayden's remark, but she soon gave him a warm smile for his gallantry.

"...but...thank you." Hayden smiled lovingly at his wife.

"You're welcome." Julia managed to carefully pull Lily off of Hayden's chest while Nidoqueen gently pulled Hayden onto his feet, despite having done so by clasping the back of his neck. "Ow...thanks," he said as he rubbed the back of his neck. Nidoqueen merely huffed and nodded in response.

"Thank you, Nidoqueen," Lily said gratefully. Nidoqueen nodded at Lily before looking in Crawdaunt's direction; the Rouge Pokémon stood up on her feet and attempted to attack Hayden and Lily again with her pincer. Nidoqueen charged towards the crabby lobster-like Pokémon with her fists gleaming in a pale cyan light. Julia stepped in front of Lily protectively while Hayden reclaimed his dropped Poké Ball. Watching the scuffle between Nidoqueen and Crawdaunt as he returned to Lily's side, Hayden became even more frustrated as he swapped Poké Balls and took another one at the same time.

"This is getting ridiculous...Tidus, Tiffany, you're up!" he yelled as he opened both Poké Balls. The Liepard and fine-furred Typhlosion emerged side by side, looking fairly keen to battle the antagonistic Crawdaunt. Lily took a Poké Ball in hand herself.

"Chelsea, we need you!" she called as her red-eyed Meganium leapt forth from the capsule.

"Tiffany, Fake Out! Tidus, Swift attack!"

"Chelsea, use Vine Whip to get Nidoqueen away from Crawdaunt, and hurry!"

"Ganium!" Chelsea shot out two thick vines from either side of her neck, which wrapped around Nidoqueen's waist and hoisted her into the air as Tiffany sprinted over to the Crawdaunt and clapped her paws together to release her flinching shock wave. At the same time, Tidus unleashed a wave of white stars from his gaping mouth that all collided with Crawdaunt a millisecond after Tiffany turned around and darted back to Hayden's side. Frustrated with Crawdaunt's persistence, Nidoqueen clapped both hands above her head and began to spin around as she tried to dive towards Crawdaunt; to Chelsea's surprise, Nidoqueen literally slipped out of her grip.

"Oh, dear...!" Lily sighed.

"This is getting nowhere," Hayden complained as Crawdaunt slammed her pincer directly on the back of Nidoqueen's neck, halting her attack. "So long as they're both in the same vicinity, this battle may as well be to the death..."

"But what can we do about it?" Lily asked in confusion. Hayden pulled a Dusk Ball from his belt bag and held it in front of her. "Huh?"

"You have to catch Nidoqueen," Hayden explained.

"What?! W-Why me?" Lily asked in a mild panic.

"Because I have six Pokémon on hand already; you only have five – that means Nidoqueen will be in your party, which will let us take her straight to the Pokémon Centre," Hayden explained as Tidus and Julia both rolled into the Crawdaunt. Chelsea used her Vine Whip to whisk them away from Crawdaunt before she could drench the pair of them with steaming hot water.

"But...are you sure we can't defeat Crawdaunt straight away?"

"Lily, Crawdaunt has Dragon Dance, and it looks like she's used as many as she can use; heck, I'm surprised Tiffany was able to get away from her since this whole mess started! Why, are you not wanting to catch Nidoqueen or something?"

"I-I...I don't know, Hayden, capturing a Pokémon shouldn't be something that's done on a whim!" Lily panicked. "Especially if it's not what the Pokémon wants!"

"Man, it's tough being a bilingual sometimes," Hayden sighed. Lily nodded in complete agreement. "But I'm sure Nidoqueen would rather that than...whatever's going on between her and Crawdaunt," he presumed as he watched as Crawdaunt crossed her arms across Nidoqueen's face, leaving a large and deep X-shaped scar squarely between her eyes.

"Nidoqueen!" Lily feared for the Drill Pokémon, particularly as she collapsed onto one knee. After quickly repelling Julia, Tidus, Tiffany and Chelsea with a rainfall of boulders that fell from the numerous ripples of energy hanging above their heads, Crawdaunt smirked as she aimed her gaping pincer, brimming in a bright blue glow, at Nidoqueen.

"HURRY!" Hayden shouted anxiously. In an instant, Lily threw the Dusk Ball at the near-submissive Nidoqueen.

"Craw?!" Much to Crawdaunt's horror, the Dusk Ball tapped Nidoqueen and absorbed her into its sanctuary before her pincer could clasp her target's throat. Crawdaunt watched the Dusk Ball as it flew back into Lily's hand; the central button shone red to confirm the capture. Hayden and Lily sighed with relief.

"Good arm, Petal."

"Craw...! CRAWDAUNT!" Livid, Crawdaunt vented her frustration on Chelsea, crossing her arms against the distracted Meganium's body and knocking her out in a single attack.

"Chelsea! R-Return!" Lily took Chelsea's Poké Ball and recalled her fallen Herb Pokémon. Crawdaunt began to stare daggers at Lily; Hayden stepped in front of her protectively and matched Crawdaunt's glare perfectly.

"Lily, get back to the bridge," Hayden said quietly.

"What?"

"The fact that you've just caught Nidoqueen is why Crawdaunt's angrier than before; she wants to hurt YOU now, and I'll be damned if I let my wife get hurt on my watch as well!"

"As well-" Lily suddenly gasped in horror; Hayden still blamed himself for Alexa's agitated emotional pain! "Oh, Hayden-"

"Please, don't argue with me; just GO!" Lily looked flummoxed; she wasn't even trying to argue! "GO!" Hayden yelled again.

"Julia, come on!" Lily called. Julia hurried after Lily as she fled towards the bridge. Crawdaunt, however, had Lily in her crosshairs and charged towards her with her pincer surrounded by a spiralling stream of water. Hayden hastily took another Poké Ball from his bag and opened it instantly; the emitted light, fortunately, landed between Crawdaunt and Lily as the emerging Electivire grabbed the slamming pincer effortlessly and stared violently at the bewildered crustacean. Before she could retry her attack with her opposite pincer, the Electivire slammed his electrified fist directly onto the star growth and pushed her back, almost towards the water. Hayden glared at the recovering Crawdaunt as he joined his Electivire's side.

"Now, you listen to me, you petty little princess... Nobody – and I MEAN nobody – tries to hurt MY wife and gets away with it!" he roared furiously. Crawdaunt merely growled violently at him. "Time to end your onslaught RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW! Clyde, Thunder Punch again! Tidus, Overheat! Tiffany, Psych Up!"

Complying gladly, Clyde sprinted towards the exhausted Crawdaunt with his electrified fist while Tiffany's eyes briefly shone silver as she stared at the shining Rogue Pokémon and a red aura began to consume Tidus. Lily and Julia looked down at the battle from the bridge just in time to see Tidus releasing a huge pillar of brilliant white flames with blue-white fire spiralling around them at Crawdaunt. Crawdaunt roared in agony, despite being resistant to Fire type attacks. After the attack ended, Tidus began to pant.

"Now, Tiffany, finish it! Aerial Ace!" Hayden bellowed.

"REOW!" Tiffany felt even lighter on her feet as she darted towards the singed Crawdaunt as streams of white light flowed down her body. Crawdaunt had no time to retaliate as Tiffany collided with her underbelly, leaving a small crack in her shell upon impact. Crawdaunt flew backwards and crashed into the ground behind her; she then lay there, completely unconscious.

Hayden silently returned all three of his Pokémon back into their Poké Balls, keeping a nasty glare focused on the fallen Crawdaunt the entire time. Lily and Julia began to hurry over to Hayden as soon as he began to slowly make his way towards the bridge. On his way, however, he suddenly recoiled and collapsed onto one knee, terrifying Lily.

"HAYDEN!" Lily almost slid along the ground as she knelt in front of the injured Hayden. "Hayden, are you okay?!"

"It-it's done, Lily; it's over...thank Arceus for that," Hayden chuckled breathlessly. "...aagh...! ...my back...!" Lily scurried behind Hayden and ever so carefully lifted up his now mildly damaged T-shirt to inspect the full extent of his back injury; there were numerous grazes on his back and a fairly large bruise in the middle of the collection. However, Lily sighed with relief.

"Thank Arceus you're not bleeding..." Hayden huffed a small chuckle.

"I'd know if I was. But...thanks for making sure." Lily lowered his T-shirt delicately before moving in front of him again. "There isn't a Pokémon Centre around here...the nearest is Opelucid, I think..."

"Cheryl can take us anywhere, though," Lily said gently.

"Your call, Petal; going out was your idea, after all," Hayden said, giving her a slightly cheeky smirk. Lily sighed as she gave him a nervous smile.

"Yeah; good idea that turned out to be, huh? You get your woes off of your chest and end up with wounds on your back."

"I've had worse," Hayden said confidently. "...to be honest, Lily...I'm beat."

"Me, too... How about we drop off Nidoqueen at Castelia Pokémon Centre and get back to the hotel and take advantage of room service?"

"Sounds good to me. ...I just hope Keenan isn't too lonely," Hayden said with a fading smile.

"He has his Pokémon, don't worry," Lily smiled. "I'll do something about your back when we're at the hotel, okay?"

"You don't have to, but thanks for the thought," Hayden smiled kindly.

"Absolutely." Lily felt herself blushing slightly. "...Hayden?"

"Hm?" Before Hayden knew it, Lily quickly, yet gently, pressed her lips against his. Though initially startled, Hayden soon relaxed as he stroked her honey blonde hair, even after she softly released the kiss.

"You were amazing. Thank you, Tiger," she said lovingly. Hayden gently touched foreheads with her.

"At least I did something right by my family today. Thanks, Petal." Lily snuck another kiss on his lips before she took a Poké Ball from her belt bag.

"You're welcome. Right, the sooner we get Nidoqueen the help she needs, the sooner I can help my hero." Hayden chuckled as Lily released Cheryl from her Poké Ball.

"Hero, huh?" He smiled yearningly. "I wonder if Lexie still sees me as such after today..."

"Ask her when she's back," Lily winked. Hayden admired her confidence in their daughter's return and smiled more cheerfully at her. Lily looked up at her confused and concerned Gardevoir. "Castelia Pokémon Centre, please."

"Gardevoir," Cheryl nodded obediently as she relaxed her stance. With a quick flash of white light, Cheryl disappeared from the bottom of the bridge with Julia, Hayden and Lily.

 _To be continued..._


	43. Chapter 43

**Chapter Forty Two – Tranquillity**

After knocking, Hailey carefully opened the twins' bedroom door with a tray resting on one arm. The tray held two small plates, each with a neatly made sandwich in the middle; Hailey handed the plate with the sandwich that had lettuce sticking out of the sides to Daniel and the other, which had a thin slice of cucumber threatening to slip out of the fishy filling, to Daphne.

"There you are, just the way you like them," Hailey smiled.

"Thanks, Mum," Daniel said politely.

"Oi, get back in there," Daphne grumbled as she pushed the escaping cucumber back into her sandwich. Hailey chuckled momentarily.

"Maybe I used a bit too much mayonnaise this time around; sorry about that," she said sheepishly. "Anyway, Daphne," she continued, quickly giving her daughter a relatively serious look. "I've decided that you and Peggy are only to go outside to go to school and back, but only with either myself or your father as an escort."

"Why an escort?" Daniel asked cautiously as he tore a corner off of his sandwich; flakes of chicken consequently fell onto his plate.

"The escort isn't because we don't trust you; it's because we don't trust Adelina – I'm worried the same thing that happened this afternoon will happen again. So, please, Daphne, try to understand that-"

"I know; you're just looking out for us," Daphne smiled.

"That's my girl," Hailey smiled with relief. "I know you don't like being punished, but-"

"Who does?" Daniel asked abruptly. Daphne simply shrugged.

"The less I have to associate with that pile of dead wood, the better," she said indifferently before taking a rather large bite from her sandwich. Hailey laughed awkwardly.

"Y-Yeah...I-I'll just leave you to it and I'll see you in the morning; I'll be escorting you and Peggy to school tomorrow anyway."

"Okay, thank you," Daphne grinned after swallowing her fishy food. Daniel looked up at Hailey just as she turned to make her leave.

"Mum?" Hailey turned around and faced her son curiously.

"Hm? What's wrong?"

"There's something I want to ascertain," Daniel stated. "It's about Adelina." Daphne moaned with a mouthful of sandwich still lingering in her mouth; she swallowed before she spoke further.

"Geez, you need to remember what 'ignore her' means..." Hailey chose to ignore Daphne's sardonic remark.

"What about her?" Daniel took a deep, yet silent, breath before he spoke, which gave Hailey a cause for concern.

"She called me Two-Tone."

"What?!" Hailey was incredibly rattled by the revelation.

"I was wondering if-"

"No," Hailey said suddenly, cutting off Daniel's question before he could even ask, bewildering him.

"But-"

"I know what you're asking, Daniel, and the answer is no; I haven't uttered a word about that to her or anyone other than my brothers. You have my word on that." Hailey's answer only served to puzzle Daniel further.

"But...that doesn't make any sense; how does she-"

"Knock it off, Daniel, before you turn into an insomniac," Daphne said, almost teasingly. Hailey sighed as she looked at both of the twins firmly.

"NEITHER of you are to look into this. Understood?" Daniel smiled gently.

"Yes, Mum."

"Absolutely, Mother dearest!" Daphne saluted. Hailey smiled kindly.

"Good. Good night, you two," she said as she left the room.

"G'night!" the twins called harmoniously as Hailey closed the door behind her.

Hailey bumped into Colin as she turned away from the twins' bedroom; he'd not long exited from Peggy's bedroom with an empty tray of his own. With his free arm, Colin gently stroked Hailey's bleach blonde hair as she lifted herself from his chest.

"Hey, being clumsy's my thing," he chuckled.

"S-Sorry..." Hailey smiled lovingly as she blushed slightly. "H-How's Peggy?"

"She and Piper are sleeping. As we jested, Peggy's resting in Piper's wings."

"Aww..."

"How are the twins?" Hailey suddenly lost her smile, much to Colin's confusion.

"Yeah, I...I need to talk to you about that..."

"Hm?"

"...she...knows about Two-Tone..." It took several seconds to process who Hailey was referencing; when he believed he figured it out, however, Colin was horrified.

"A-Adelina...?!" Hailey's confirming nod horrified Colin further. "H-How?!"

"I don't know...I don't know what to do about it..." Colin relaxed, but looked worried for his wife.

"Well, technically, we're not doing anything about her anymore, so...stick with that, I guess..." His suggestion provided no comfort to Hailey. "Hey, c'mon...why don't we have a chill out in the kitchen? We can just...try to forget about all of this Adelina crap until...uh..." Colin quickly lost his smile, completely lost as to how to finish his attempt to reassure Hailey. "...something...I dunno..."

"...sounds nice," Hailey smiled. "It'll give me an excuse to actually drink that Lime Coke you bought me a while back." Colin laughed.

"That's my Honeybee!" He began to make his way towards the staircase. "Makes me wish I—WHAAA!" Colin missed a step on the stairs and almost fell down them; he grabbed onto the banister just in time. Hailey was alarmed and rushed to aid him.

"Are you okay, Colin?" Colin laughed nervously.

"I told you being clumsy's my thing..." Hailey sighed, but with a smile.

Iara lay on top of Keenan's head and watched as he played another one of his games on his PlayBox; he was playing an arcade fighter game, playing as a Gallade and battling a Medicham in a surprisingly scenic background, which had many beds of red flowers within the boundaries of a tall stone wall with two identical Pidgeot statues on either side of the gateway. Iara cheered Keenan on as his Gallade avatar had more health than the Medicham, whose health bar was depleting with each punch and kick that Gallade was hitting it with. Though faintly, Keenan saw a reflection of a white light on the television screen and turned around; Cheryl was behind him with Lily, but Keenan was shocked when he saw Hayden slightly leaning against Lily for support – Hayden appeared to be in pain again.

"DAD!" Keenan literally dropped the controller after instantly pausing the game and jumped onto his feet. "Dad, are you okay?! What happened?!"

"I'm fine, kiddo...it's just a scratch," Hayden replied as he winced.

"A bruise and several grazes, actually, but everything's fine, sweetheart," Lily said comfortingly. Hayden gave a small smile.

"It is now..."

"I-I don't understand...!"

"Your father got hurt helping me out, that's all," Lily said modestly. Keenan blinked in confusion before his worry returned to him.

"B-But-"

"Keenan, relax; it's all superficial – it's just really tender, that's all," Hayden said calmly. But Keenan couldn't relax.

"S-Should we tell Alex, though?!" he asked. Hayden and Lily lost what smiles they had.

"No, sweetie, I don't think that's a good idea right now..." As much as he wanted Alexa to return to them, Hayden nodded in agreement. "Right, then, let's see what we can do about your back," Lily said on a more positive note.

"Thank you," Hayden said quietly as he walked with Lily towards their bedroom. Keenan watched them worriedly until a sudden thought came to his mind.

"It-it wasn't Adelina, was it?!" Hayden and Lily looked back at Keenan in bafflement.

"No, sweetie, just a couple of wild Pokémon, that's all."

"Fortunately, it wasn't the one your mother caught," Hayden added. Keenan and Iara were surprised.

"You caught a new Pokémon?"

"She's at the city's Pokémon Centre right now; we'll pick her up in the morning, so you'll get to meet her soon," Lily winked. "Right, shall we?" She escorted Hayden into the bedroom and slightly closed the door behind her.

No longer in the mood to continue playing on his PlayBox, Keenan simply turned off the console and pushed it towards the television before retreating to his bedroom and closed the door behind him. Once inside, the first thing he noticed was Alexa's bed; he saw Chutney and Purukin's Poké Balls, the Seal pouches and the water bottles that fell from Alexa's backpack. He remembered seeing how those items came to be sprawled all over the bed, but it was remembering how livid Alexa was that made him feel gloomy. He sat himself down on his bed and eventually lay on his back, head near his pillows. Iara shifted from the top of Keenan's head to near his right shoulder and looked at him worriedly. Initially, Iara felt happy to feel Keenan's hand stroking the back of her head, but felt very concerned for him when she realised he wasn't even looking at her as he stroked her.

Troy sighed contently as he relaxed on his sofa, resting his head against one of the armrests and his feet close to the other and a cup of freshly brewed tea on the coffee table nearby. Mac sat against the sofa, close to Troy's head, as he slept, Lukie was curled up under the table, partly asleep, Brent lay on the headrests with his feet slightly hanging down the back of the sofa, Zane roosted on the headrest of the armchair, Nate slept on the same armchair and Lucy lay on the floor near Troy's feet, resting her eyes. Everyone was completely relaxed, even when Troy's Xtransceiver began to ring in a monotonous tone. Troy squinted at the caller ID, refusing to lift his head from the armrest.

"Shoot; I knew there was a tone I forgot to change," he grumbled as he accepted the call from his mother; soon enough, Harvey and Naomi appeared on the main screen, but Troy didn't see how frantic Naomi looked. "Hi, Mum-"

"Don't you 'hi, Mum' ME, mister!" Naomi yelled. All of a sudden, everyone was wide awake and alarmed; the Pokémon all watched Troy conversing with a panicky Naomi. "Your father just told me about your attacks! Y-You're not hurt, are you?!" Troy rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly as Harvey appeared on the screen, attempting to calm Naomi down.

"No...w-we've had some casualties during today's attack, but everyone's fine now," he said reassuringly.

"And yesterday's?" Naomi asked. Troy gulped as he looked away from his mother, staring at the window overlooking Route 3, though doing so did nothing to assuage him.

"...y-yeah, I-I'd...I'd rather not go into that one..."

"Aw, baby...!"

"But it's fine!" Troy said abruptly, putting on a false smile. "really, I-I have great support from my gang, so it's fine!" Harvey raised an eyebrow.

"Troy, you're jumpier than a Spoink high on caffeine," he observed worriedly. Troy recoiled.

"Urgh...! It-It's nothing, really!" Harvey's concern only grew; he knew he was putting on a brave face purely for his mother's benefit.

"Troy-"

"Sorry, Dad, I..." Troy lay back down and leaned his head on the armrest. "I'm just really drained; after I've had my tea, I'm turning in for the night..."

"Can't say I blame you; you had two attacks in one week," Harvey said understandingly. "I know I'd—" A gentle xylophone tone began to play in the background. "Oh, hang on..."

Troy waited a few seconds before, to his surprise, the two concealed side screens shot out from his Xtransceiver; Hailey and Colin were on the left hand screen and Hayden was on the right hand screen – but all of them were equally as baffled as each other.

"What the-"

"Whoa, it's a party! Sweet!" Troy laughed.

"I-I didn't see this coming," Hailey chuckled sheepishly. Hayden laughed quietly.

"Who would?"

"So, what's up, guys?" Harvey asked excitedly.

"I-I just wanted to make sure of something, that's all," Hailey said coyly.

"I'm just—aagh...!" Hearing Hayden flinching in agony alarmed everyone else in the call, Harvey and Hailey especially.

"Sorry, Hayden," Lily apologised.

"Whoa, what's wrong, bro? Did you get hurt or something?"

"Y-Yeah...some stupid Crawdaunt tried to attack us; I fell on my back getting away from her. Aaaagh...! ...it-it stings like hell..." Lily looked at the Xtransceiver from over Hayden's naked shoulder.

"He hurt himself trying to protect me."

"Awwwwwww, that's so sweet!" Hailey said admiringly. Hayden, Harvey and Troy gave her a quizzical look, while Naomi tried not to laugh at the facial expressions she was seeing. "...well, I think so..."

"Aunt Hailey, you're so nutty," Troy chuckled.

"I was a little reckless, perhaps, but...it was in the heat of the moment," Hayden smiled nervously as he managed to stroke Lily's head before she moved from his shoulder.

"As long as you're okay..."

"I'll be fine, Harvey; I'm in wonderful hands," Hayden said sweetly. Lily felt herself blushing as she swapped the bowl of water for the first aid kit that was on the bedside table. She then began to rummage through the kit and picked out a bundle of dressings. "What was your thing, Hai—nnngh...!" Hayden winced as Lily applied the first dressing to his injured back as gently as she could. "...H-Hailey...?"

"W-We ARE still ignoring Adelina, right?"

"Yep," Harvey nodded.

"How many times have we established that by now?" Troy wondered.

"I lost count after she kissed me," Colin confessed.

"Why?" Hayden asked Hailey.

"It's just...Daniel told me she knows...a-about Two-Tone..." Everyone, including Troy, felt completely rattled. "N-Nobody said anything to her about it, did they?"

"No!" Hayden said immediately, feeling slightly offended.

"I hardly know the broad," Troy said casually.

"I know I didn't. ...look, don't worry about it; let's just sleep today away and we can all regroup about her tomorrow if it's still bugging you, sis," Harvey proposed.

"Thanks, Harvey."

"Of course, we can regroup tomorrow about anything if you want to...or you can just do your own thing; no skin off my nose," Harvey laughed. Hayden suddenly remembered something.

"Hey, Naomi?"

"Hm? What's the matter, Hayden?" Naomi asked.

"When Alexa left this afternoon, she said she went to see Keith – that was several hours ago. I-I was wondering if you knew if she-"

"Oh, yes; Harvey and I met her in reception," Naomi answered truthfully. "As far as we know, she's still here." A wave of relief washed over Hayden as he sighed contently.

"Thank Arceus..." As Lily placed the bowl of water carefully on the bedside table, she smiled sweetly.

"I-I can call Keith's room to see if she's willing to-"

"No, leave her be; I just...I just wanted to know where she is, that's all. Thanks, Naomi."

"Of course," Naomi said courteously.

"Okay! Let's get some rest tonight and we can talk more tomorrow if you want to! Sound good?"

"Sounds good to me!" Troy agreed.

"I concur!" Hailey added, almost in song. Hayden simply nodded in response.

"So we're agreed then! Feel better soon, Hayden!"

"Believe me, Harvey, I'll feel a lot better once Alexa's home." As she began to rummage through the first aid kit, Lily admired his stronger confidence in their daughter's return.

"All righty then! Speak to you tomorrow!"

"See ya, Dad!"

"Bye, Harvey, Hayden!"

"Bye."

All three screens on Troy's Xtransceiver suddenly went black as the call disconnected and the two side screens retracted back into the device. With peace and quiet returning to his living room, Troy and the Pokémon could all relax again; Troy took a sip of his hot tea before he relaxed properly.

Hayden flinched as Lily carefully placed the last squared dressing over the final remaining graze; though she was relieved to see that all of the grazes were dressed, she felt slightly despondent that it looked like a white kitchen floor had been tattooed onto his back.

"That's it, Tiger; that was the last one. I'm sorry I don't have anything sweet to give you," she said almost teasingly. Hayden turned around and placed his hand gently on top of hers just as she closed the first aid kit.

"I have YOU, don't I?"

"Oh, Hayden, stop it!" Lily giggled as she lightly and playfully slapped her free hand on her husband's bare chest. Hayden laughed until he realised she was looking away from him; he became confused.

"What? What's wrong?"

"...it's just..." Lily looked up at him and, to his relief, she was smiling lovingly with a gentle blush about her cheeks. "You sounded more confident than you were earlier, that's all..."

"You're a good influence, that's why," Hayden said sweetly.

"I'm just glad you're feeling better, Tiger." Hayden closed his eyes softly as he placed a hand on the back of Lily's head; she closed her eyes gently as he lightly touched foreheads with her before rubbing noses with her.

"What would I do without you, Petal...?"

"Don't worry about it, Tiger..." Lily said in a soft whisper. She and Hayden drew closer to one another as their lips met. They soon broke free from their kiss delicately as they heard knocking on the bedroom door and faced it just in time for Keenan to poke his head into the room.

"Dad...?" Keenan was taken slightly aback when he saw Hayden had cheered up significantly since he first returned to the hotel room, but showed little to no reaction to his father being completely shirtless.

"Hey, kiddo!"

"What's wrong, sweetie?" Lily asked as she signalled Keenan to enter the room. Keenan closed the door behind him and Iara as they approached Hayden and Lily. All of them sat on the double bed as they conversed, Iara hanging from Keenan's shoulder throughout the chat.

"I got worried...are you sure it's nothing serious?" Keenan asked.

"We're sure, sweetie," Lily answered. "It really is just shallow grazing and a bruise."

"My back feels pretty stiff now," Hayden chuckled.

"That's my fault; I made your back look like a kitchen floor," Lily laughed.

"Kinda feels like it, too," Hayden sniggered. Keenan wanted to enjoy his parents' jokes, but he felt unable to, concerning Iara immensely.

"...I..." Hayden and Lily faced their son worriedly. "...I-I want Alex to come back...!" Hayden in particular pitied him; it was clear that he still blamed himself for what happened to Alexa.

"She will, honey," Lily said comfortingly.

"Y-You think so?"

"Have a little faith, will you?" Lily chuckled.

"But what if she gets hurt or-"

"Keenan." Keenan looked at his father in confusion. "We know she's in Driftveil at the very least; that alone is enough to set my mind at ease, and I'm why she's there in the first place!" Lily lost her smile and rolled her eyes; despite him carrying a smile and a slightly playful tone, she knew he still felt horrid for how harshly he treated Alexa.

"Besides...she can take care of herself," Lily added on a lighter note. "No matter where she is, we just have to trust that she's somewhere safe."

 _To be continued..._


	44. Chapter 44

**Chapter Forty Three – Dawn**

Alexa awoke gently as the morning rays of sunshine felt warm on her face. However, as soon as she opened her eyes completely, she discovered she was almost nestled in Keith's bare chest as he lay sound asleep next to her. She shifted herself away from him in a mild panic as she realised that she, too, was bare-chested and pulled the bed covers over her chest as she sat up; she felt her emerald choker around her neck and discovered her grey crop top, neon green T-shirt, black knee-high boots and Keith's grey long-sleeved shirt, navy blue T-shirt and black trainers sprawled carelessly across the foot of the bed. She was about to virtually leap out of the bed when she suddenly looked at the snoozing Keith; seeing how peaceful he looked as he partly cuddled the pillow he was resting his head against made Alexa smile and relax. She began to gently stroke his smooth spiky crimson hair until he awoke with a brief moan; he looked up at her and smiled when he saw her smile.

"Hey..."

"Hey...I thought you'd bolt..." Both Keith and Alexa felt incredibly content, as their voices were soft and quiet.

"...almost did..." Alexa confessed. Keith lifted himself up a little, revealing the dog-tags that hung from his neck.

"...how are you feeling?" Alexa's smile waned.

"...a-a little conflicted about last night I'll admit, but..." Alexa suddenly fell backwards onto the bed, confusing and concerning Keith. "...I-I feel better about everything else..." Keith felt worried.

"You don't sound it..." Alexa looked up at him.

"No, really, I do... ...I-I know I need to talk to my family – my Dad especially – about yesterday and..." Alexa smiled as she looked up at the ivory white ceiling above her. "I feel like I can do it."

"Yeah?" Keith felt optimistic for her.

"Mm," Alexa nodded. She closed her eyes gently. "...thank you."

"Of course. I meant every word I said-"

"I can tell," Alexa said quickly, giving him a teasing smirk. Keith glanced away from her, looking slightly annoyed.

"You can tell, right...forgot about that..." Alexa sniggered to herself until Keith's concerned look returned. "I really don't want you to end up estranged from your family."

"Neither do I..." Keith waited patiently for any conclusion to what he presumed was an incomplete sentence, but became baffled when Alexa held a hand over her eyes...as she chuckled. "I bet Keenan's gonna freak out when he wakes up and realises I never went back to Castelite..." Keith merely stared at her in bafflement as Alexa leaned across the bed to drag her two tops over to her before sliding out of bed, covering her bare breasts with her clothes; her blue denim shorts and white knee high socks were the only articles of clothing left on her. "N-Not that my family doesn't trust me to know I can take care of myself," she continued as Keith climbed out of bed, revealing his grey jeans and black socks, and walked over to her as she collected her nude strapless bra from the bed post. "Not that I'd blame them if they don't trust me anymore after yesterday, but-" Suddenly, Keith wrapped one arm around Alexa's back and gently pressed the index and middle fingers of his other hand over her lips to abruptly and softly silence her.

"Deal with that as it comes," he advised in a gentle whisper. "In the meantime," he continued, wrapping his other arm around her back. "How about we get breakfast and I drop you off at Castelite?" Alexa was alarmed.

"Y-You really don't have to, I-I can always go to the Pokémon Centre and-" Suddenly, Alexa halted herself. She knew she could visit the Pokémon Centre and pick up any of her Flying type Pokémon to take her back to Castelite, but something compelled her to accept the favour Keith was offering to her in spite of her conflicting emotions regarding how she ended up under the bedclothes with him during the night. The more she thought about Keith's generous offer, the warmer and fuzzier she felt, which was reflected in how red her face gradually became. "...that-that sounds nice...thank you." Keith was initially surprised to hear Alexa accepting his offer without putting much of a resistance with her modesty, but he smiled happily upon hearing her acceptance.

"It's my pleasure, babe." Alexa felt even warmer and fuzzier.

"...w-where do you have breakfast anyway?" she asked, hoping to change the subject slightly.

"The café in the city's market," Keith explained as he released himself from her to collect his clothes. Alexa panicked when she almost dropped the clothes she held over her chest and almost squeezed them against her breasts. "You ever been there?"

"No," Alexa said simply as Keith pulled the grey shirt over his head.

"Then you, Kitten," he smirked as he pulled his navy T-shirt over his head and moved his dog-tags to the front of his clothes. "Are in for a treat!" Alexa smiled nervously as she felt her blushing intensifying again.

"I-I'll just, um..." Keith laughed.

"Change in the en suite if you really wanna," he offered, pointing to the room in question with his thumb. "Not that I care either way, I've already-"

"Yes, thank you, Keith!" Alexa said suddenly as she bolted into the en suite with her bundle of clothes. Keith refrained from bursting into laughter as he saw how fast she went into the room, but relaxed once she closed the door behind her. With Alexa out of sight, Keith looked over at the bedside table and approached it; being as quiet as possible, he picked up the gift box he received from the Driftveil Market and looked over at Alexa's discarded belt bag with a cunning grin – he had an idea.

Troy whistled a merry tune as he walked around his paddock with a basket full of mixed berries under his arm, handing a handful of them to each Daycare Pokémon he passed by; some immediately began to tuck in, while others sniffed the berries before they enjoyed their morsels. Brent walked alongside Troy as he helped distribute the berries. Mac walked alongside Lukie as he skipped around the Daycare with a smaller basket rocking around on top of his head as the Emboar handed the Pokémon they passed a Lava Cookie each. Lucy lay next to the pregnant Purugly to not only keep an eye on her condition while Troy was busy with tending to the Pokémon's appetites, but to keep her company. Nate nervously played with the younger Pokémon of the paddock and, eventually, helped them eat the Lava Cookies and berries Mac and Troy handed over to them. Zane roosted on the Daycare Centre's roof, keeping an eye on the paddock and everything in the surrounding area; the Archeops seemed to enjoy his sentry duties, as he wore a wide grin on his face. He spotted Hailey walking along the route towards Striaton City with Daphne, Peggy and the evolved form of Piper; he roared faintly to attract Troy's attention, pointing to the passing relatives when the breeder looked up at him. Having heard Zane's gleeful roar, Hailey, Daphne and Peggy approached the Daycare fence as Troy and Brent walked over to them.

"Morning, Aunt Hailey, girls!"

"Hi, Troy!" Peggy greeted politely.

"Hi!"

"How is everyone?" Hailey asked worriedly, noticing the plentiful bandages on the Pokémon.

"I'm a little concerned about Purugly, but everyone's on the mend, it seems; breakfast this morning is berries and Lava Cookies just in case, though," he winked.

"A-And Pikachu?" Peggy asked worriedly. Troy looked back at the paddock and searched the area for the electric rodent in question; the Mouse Pokémon was happily enjoying the Lava Cookie Mac gave to him with his Dedenne companion. Troy smiled as he saw the look of delight on their faces.

"Pikachu's just fine."

"Phew," Peggy sighed with relief.

"Ti-ruuuuh...!" Troy faced the equally relieved Altaria.

"And that's thanks to you, Piper!"

"T-Ti-ruuuuuh...!" Flattered, Piper hid her blushing face in her abundantly fluffy white wings. While Daphne and Peggy found Piper's mild embarrassment amusing, Hailey looked at her eldest nephew with a straight face, confusing him.

"I'm glad things have worked out for you; the girls, on the other hand, are about to find out if they'll even be going to school today."

"S-Sorry," Troy apologised.

"It's out own fault, Troy," Daphne said with indifference.

"W-We shouldn't have run off," Peggy added, somewhat shamefully. Troy soon gave her a gentle smile.

"Hey, as long as the lesson's learned, then that's all that matters." He suddenly looked frustrated. "Someone needs to tell Adelina that..."

"Let's not worry about her for now," Hailey said on a more upbeat note. "Hey, Troy?"

"Yep?"

"Would you mind looking after Piper for the day?" Hailey asked. "And maybe help her get used to her new strength? I-I know Annabelle should be the one to help her with it, but-"

"I can get the Voltorb rolling," Troy winked. "Though, with all due respect, it IS up to Peggy." He looked down at the little girl in question with a kind smile. "Your call, Pegs." Peggy and Piper looked at one another in confusion before Peggy looked up at Troy awkwardly, rubbing her arm with the other.

"Y-You wouldn't mind...?"

"Not at all!" Troy grinned. He looked up at the delighted Archeops and signalled him to fly down to him, which he complied all too eagerly. "Zane can help her out, too." Zane roared excitedly, much to Peggy and Piper's shared glee.

"Thank you, Troy!"

"Ti-ruuuuh!" Piper cooed merrily as she flew over the fence and settled next to Zane.

"You just wait, ladies; Piper's gonna be able to handle herself by day's end!"

Keenan awakened from his slumber with almost nothing but groggy moans as he sat up. Iara stretched and yawned at the foot of the bed as Keenan rubbed his eyes. When he glanced over at Alexa's bed, he suddenly found himself wide awake with terror; her bed had remained untouched from when she hastily packed a few of her supplies and stormed out of the hotel – Chutney and Purukin's Poké Balls were still at the foot of the bed! Panicking, Keenan bolted out of bed and ran out of the bedroom and into his parents'; Hayden and Lily were sound asleep, Hayden lying on his stomach. Keenan hurried over to Hayden's side of the double bed.

"Mum! Dad!" Keenan rested his palms on his Dad's shoulder as he tried to almost shake him awake; however, it was his hand accidentally slipping onto Hayden's back that caused him to wake up...sharply.

"D'aaagh!" Keenan quickly recoiled as Hayden's pain-filled yelp proved more than effective enough to awaken Lily from her slumber, almost as groggily as Keenan had.

"S-Sorry, Dad!" Hayden moaned as he sat up in bed, placing his hand on his dressed back. Lily sat up, revealing her white lace nightgown, and glanced over at the alarm clock next to her and was mildly surprised that it was later in the morning than she thought it was; the clock read 8:42.

"Ow...still tender, then..." Getting over the fact that she, Hayden and Keenan ended up sleeping in, Lily looked over at her panicking son.

"What's the matter, sweetie?" she asked quietly.

"A-Alex...she-she never came back last night!" he cried. The revelation almost horrified Hayden, but Lily simply raised an eyebrow.

"After what happened yesterday, were you honestly expecting her to?" she asked. Keenan withdrew slightly as he suddenly became nervous.

"...I-I was hoping she would," he admitted shyly. Hayden faced Lily in terror.

"Lily, she didn't leave with much of anything, did she?!" he asked hastily.

"No, but she-"

"So she didn't back any clothes?!" Keenan asked suddenly. The anxiety her husband and son were presenting started to bore Lily slightly.

"No-"

"And she's been gone all night?!" Hayden asked in horror.

"All right, both of you, calm down!" Lily said authoritatively. Hayden and Keenan looked at her quietly. "She can take care of herself; I told you this before dinner!" Hayden sighed as he ran his fingers through his hair.

"You're right, you're right... I'm sorry..."

"I'm sorry, too, Mum..." Lily soon smiled kindly.

"You're sweet to worry about her, but...please, don't; let her come back to us in her own time. Otherwise, we'll only push her away even more than we already have." Now Keenan felt bad for selfishly wanting his sister to return so soon.

"...I'm sorry..."

"It's okay, sweetie," Lily smiled. "I know you're eager to see her, but you mustn't rush this, okay?" Keenan soon cheered up and nodded happily. Hayden, too, seemed to have cheered up and playfully ruffled his son's already messy hair.

"Attaboy!" Keenan laughed as he tidied his hair slightly once his father's hand was removed from his head.

The Driftveil Market was starting to become a very lively venue for the city's residents and tourists alike as Keith and Alexa sat at the café in the quietest part of the entire establishment. Robbie, Reese and Ava were happily sharing a Poffin platter while Keith and Alexa both enjoyed a creamy hot porridge for breakfast; Keith's had a swirl of golden syrup on top of his porridge, while Alexa had a fruity mixture of blueberries and raspberries on top of hers.

"So, what do you think?" Keith asked as Alexa swallowed another spoonful of her hot fruity porridge.

"I can see why you have breakfast here; this is great!"

"I chose to opt out of breakfast at the hotel, which...ended up being a bit of a mistake...but I found this place the morning after we arrived, so it's not that big a deal anymore," Keith said cheerfully as he enjoyed another spoonful of his syrupy breakfast.

"Uh, you DO realise you can book breakfast at the hotel whenever you want, right?" Alexa asked with a raised eyebrow. Keith stared at her with surprise with his spoon still in his mouth. He quickly swallowed as he took his spoon out of his mouth and glanced away from her with annoyance.

"...crap." Alexa sniggered, but Keith's glare softened to a look of near regret. "Listen..."

"Hm?"

"I...I want to apologise if what happened last night left you feeling awkward..." Alexa looked back at her belt bag.

"Good thing Ryder's still in his Poké Ball," she said quietly.

"What is it that's made you so conflicted anyway?" Keith asked curiously. Alexa faced him, looking nervous.

"...on the one hand, it...I dunno..." Alexa's struggle to respond to him worried Keith. "On one hand, it felt wrong in a way, since we...we didn't even talk about US before it happened... At the same time, though..." Alexa smiled bashfully as she took her glance away from Keith. "...I...enjoyed it... ...that's why I didn't bolt..."

"Alexa..." She looked over at him again and was puzzled and concerned to see him looking so sombre. "I do care about you-"

"I know..."

"I know you know... I-I care, I like and I love you; the last thing I want to do is to do anything you're not comfortable with..."

"I-I wasn't in any discomfort! I-I know I said it felt wrong on the one hand, but...honestly, I...I still enjoyed it regardless..." Now Keith felt awkward.

"...it-it's just...w-when you coddled me, it... ...y-you felt so warm..." Alexa blushed at his discreet compliment. "I-Is that how you feel when I do the same to you?"

"In truth? That's exactly how it felt yesterday...I..." Slightly anxious, Alexa slowly turned her porridge with her spoon, causing the remaining berries to mix with the milky hot oats. "I-I just felt really safe..." Also feeling uneasy, Keith mimicked her porridge turning gesture.

"...I did, too..." Alexa watched as her blueberries and raspberries mixed with one another as they blended into her breakfast; she took a spoonful of the fused meal and consumed it – the perfect mixture of the two berries somehow made her think more intricately about her relationship with Keith. After savouring and swallowing her spoonful, she looked over at Keith.

"Keith?" Keith looked over at her in response to her. "D-Do we even have anything to work out anymore?" Keith tilted his head in confusion.

"What do you mean?"

"Well...y-you've already apologised for what you said that night and...I've already apologised for not wanting to believe you..." Alexa somehow felt herself smiling. "...a-and spending time with you has been really great...e-even after Xavier's injury..." Her smile was short-lived as she looked over at Keith again; she looked distressed, but sounded more perplexed than anything else. "So, d-do you think it's safe for me to say that w-we're okay to go back to how we were?" Alexa's question attracted the attention of Keith's Pokémon as they finally chose to pay attention to the conversation.

"What do you think?" Keith asked casually.

"Huh?"

"Ask yourself that question," he replied as he took another spoonful of his syrupy breakfast. Alexa sat silently as she comprehended an answer to her own question; while it was true that she felt happy around Keith again, she somehow felt like something was stopping her from embracing this happiness. Trying to comprehend precisely what was stopping her from enjoying her quality time with her boyfriend to the fullest made her feel tense.

"...I-I'll have to get back to you on that..." Keith chuckled.

"It's fine; you have other things on your mind as well," he said understandingly.

"Sorry..." Keith smiled comfortingly as he placed a hand gently onto hers.

"Nah, don't worry about it; family's important." Alexa felt reassured as she felt Keith's thumb stroking the back of her hand.

"Yeah...it is. Thanks, Keith." Keith smiled happily at her, much to the delight of his Pokémon.

Troy, Lukie, Mac and Brent met near the centre of the paddock with empty baskets in hand. Troy accepted the basket from his goofy Watchog and placed it inside his larger basket. He was about to head indoors with both baskets when Brent suddenly patted Troy's shoulder; turning his attention to where his Simisage was looking, Troy soon realised that Harvey and Naomi, wearing a more casual white blouse with her black skirt and heeled shoes, approaching them. Troy grinned as he approached the fence with his Emboar and Watchog following.

"Hey, Mum, Dad! What's the occasion?"

"Since when did parents need a reason to see their offspring?" Harvey asked, feigning offence.

"I was talking about the two of you being hand in hand," Troy said cheekily. Naomi was perplexed.

"But we're not hand in hand..."

"You might as well be," Troy chuckled teasingly. Harvey laughed with half-hearted sarcasm.

"How are you feeling, honey?" Naomi asked.

"I slept like a Trevenant and feel as fresh as a Lilligant," Troy replied sunnily.

"That's great to hear, sport," Harvey said happily.

"So, what's up?"

"We thought we'd pay you a visit on our way to see your Aunt Hailey," Naomi explained with a gentle smile. "It's mostly just a social call." While he was happy to see and hear that his parents were still spending time together, his smile weakened significantly.

"Sounds good; she could really use it."

"Huh? What do you mean?" Harvey asked.

"She stopped by again on her way home from the Academy," Troy began as Zane and Piper flew down towards the paddock and soared into the sky again behind him. "The girls have after school detention for a week for skipping school."

"Oh, dear..."

"Was that because of Adelina?" Harvey guessed. Troy nodded.

"Oh, poor Hailey..." Harvey placed an arm around Naomi's shoulders.

"We'll cheer her up, don't you worry!" Harvey looked up and noticed Zane and Piper flying laps over the Daycare Centre. "I see Piper's doing a little training."

"Well, she's gotta learn to control her new power SOMEHOW," Troy said casually as he shrugged. However, as he shrugged, the baskets he was carrying fell out of his grip, alarming him as soon as he heard the thump. He quickly crouched and reclaimed his baskets. "Whoops..."

"Well, we'll leave you to it and we'll see you later, okay?" Harvey chuckled.

"Yeah, sounds great," Troy said sheepishly as he handed the two baskets to his Emboar.

"See you soon, love," Naomi waved as Harvey escorted her towards Nacrene City. Troy waved back, but smiled slyly as soon as his parents' backs were turned, having noticed how close Harvey and Naomi were to one another.

"Hey, Dad!" Troy called.

"Yo!"

"You and Mum are awfully chummy all of a sudden!" he yelled teasingly.

"You don't say?!" Harvey shouted playfully in response. Troy sniggered as he returned to his business in his paddock; he immediately walked over to the pregnant Purugly and his Zebstrika and began a conversation with the two girls.

Keith and Alexa eventually left the Driftveil Market with Robbie close behind them; Ava and Reese sat on either side of the Sawsbuck's flowery antlers, taking care not to crush any of them as they held on. Alexa looked up at Keith as they moved out of the way of anyone else wanting to enter the market building.

"Thanks for treating me to breakfast, Keith."

"It's all right," Keith said kindly. "You've been treating me to lunch since we've started hanging out, so it's my turn to treat you to a meal! Even if it IS the first one of the day..."

"I wasn't planning on spending the night here..."

"Clearly," Keith chuckled, looking at her belt bag; while it was a respectable size for a belt bag, there was no way that it could serve as an overnight bag of any calibre. Alexa couldn't help giggling at his response. "But thanks for staying anyway."

"You're welcome," Alexa said sweetly.

"Right!" Keith clapped, startling Alexa. "Time to get YOU back to where you belong, m'lady!" he said playfully as he nodded at Robbie. Robbie carefully nodded in response and bent down a little. Keith quickly swung himself onto Robbie's back and held his hand out to Alexa; she took hold of his hand and held on securely as she mounted onto Robbie's back just behind Keith. "Hang on; things might get a tad bumpy." Keith looked ahead of him, despite the back of Robbie's neck obstructing most of his view. "Let's go, Robbie; to Castelite!"

"Saws!" Robbie complied as he began to gallop out of the city. The sudden dash caught Alexa off guard and held onto Keith for security. However, she suddenly realised that her fingers were fairly high up on Keith's chest when she felt his dog-tags. Eventually, she smiled and rested her head on his back; Keith felt this and smiled himself.

 _To be continued..._


	45. Chapter 45

**Chapter Forty Four – Family Reunion**

Hayden, Lily and Keenan were in the main lounge of their hotel room; Iara watched as Keenan packed some necessities and supplies into his belt bag on the sofa while Hayden and Lily sorted their inventories on the coffee table.

"What's going on today anyway?" Keenan asked in confusion as he packed a can of lemonade into his bag.

"First of all, we're going to meet Nidoqueen at the Pokémon Centre and see how she's faring after last night's...well, just last night," Lily explained. "Whether or not she ends up staying with me is up to her; I only caught her because your father told me to."

"What was the alternative?" Hayden asked hypothetically.

"I'm not insinuating you made the wrong call, Tiger; it just surprised me, that's all," Lily said gently.

"And then what?" Keenan asked curiously as he added a small purple gateau to his belongings.

"Your mother could use a new skirt," Hayden said cryptically.

"Oh, please," Lily chuckled. "I can fix it"

"How?"

"Hayden, if I can make a plush toy and even a complete attire from scratch, I can fix a torn skirt; I grew up in a boutique, remember?" Hayden laughed nervously.

"Y-Yeah..." Lily's smile shifted from a playful smirk to a soft smile as she faced her son.

"But, now that you mention it, a nice family outing with just the three of us does sound nice." Hayden still felt despondent about the fact that his family remained incomplete; without Alexa, his family somehow felt empty to him.

"Hopefully, it'll have better results than OUR evening," he said glumly as he zipped up his bag.

"I don't doubt it for a minute, Tiger," Lily winked towards Hayden. Keenan took hold of his wallet, shaped like a miniature fossil of a turtle's shell, and stared at it instead of placing it into his bag with his other items. Lily soon caught him staring at his wallet, but, while his back was turned to her, she was unable to establish how he was looking at it. "What's wrong, sweetie?"

"Nothing," Keenan said truthfully as he finally placed his wallet into his bag. "I was just thinking about getting Alex a present," he said as he zipped his bag up. "Y'know, to welcome her back!"

"Like she'd even accept it," Hayden muttered to himself.

"Maybe she won't, maybe she will; who's to say? It's the thought that counts," Lily smiled kindly. Keenan seemed to light up.

"So you think it's a good idea?" he asked hopefully.

"Absolutely! She'll at least appreciate the sentiment, regardless of what you end up getting for her, right, Hayden?" she asked as her glance quickly turned to her anxious husband. He nodded nervously in response. Keenan's wide grin soon turned into a frown of irritation.

"...oh, great..." Hayden and Lily looked at him in confusion. "I just realised I don't know what she'd like..." Iara chuckled to herself with amusement.

"Aw, sweetie, I'm sure she'll like whatever you end up giving her," Lily said sweetly. Keenan pondered on his predicament for a little while as Lily finished packing her belt bag.

"...I think I have an idea... It's vague, but it's something, right?"

"Right," Hayden agreed unconvincingly. Lily looked up at him worriedly as she clipped her belt bag around her waist.

"I thought you were keen to talk to Alexa...?"

"You're forgetting one crucial detail, Lily; in order for me to talk to her, she and I kind of need to be in the same room," Hayden said sardonically. Lily smiled as she sighed.

"Be patient, Tiger; she'll accommodate you when she's ready to." Hayden nodded submissively; he knew he had no choice but to wait for his daughter to return, yet he feared that she may not return at all.

With the sun shining brightly in the clear blue sky above, Robbie galloped so fast he felt as though he was galloping on air; he hardly felt his hooves touching the ground. Reese and Ava held onto Robbie's flowery antlers tightly as they felt the wind blowing against their faces, while Keith and Alexa were decently shielded by the back of Robbie's head. Robbie darted through Nimbasa City for what felt like the umpteenth time and dashed through the relatively crowded Join Avenue; several of the shoppers who narrowly avoided being run over by a rushing Sawsbuck tried to angrily yell at the riders – however, nobody riding on Robbie could clearly hear exactly what people were shouting at them.

Eventually, Robbie shot out of the crowded tunnel marketplace and onto the more spacious Route 4; instead of angry profanities, people watching the prancing stag were either left speechless with awe or complimented the Sawsbuck's overall health. However, much like in Join Avenue, nobody on Robbie's back heard a word said about or to them.

The speedy jaunt through Castelia City was also without incident; the streets weren't as crowded as Join Avenue and about as spacious as Route 4's main road. The pedestrians nearby were almost exactly like the ones from Route 4; awestruck by the breathtaking sight of a Pokémon as majestic as a Sawsbuck racing through the city right in front of them. One resting Trainer's Furfrou companion showed complete indifference to the Sawsbuck's fleetfooted sprint, while the eyes of his Snubbull, wearing a cute baby blue fairy dog costume that was only just about her size and a matching ribbon on her head, shone brightly as she watched the Season Pokémon tore passed her; the Trainer himself, however, failed to notice the sight as he munched through a box of freshly baked Poké Puffs.

In the end, Robbie slowed to a gentle trot before halting to a gradual stop outside his destination; The Castelite Hotel. Keith dismounted from Robbie's back and held his hand out to Alexa to assist in her own dismount.

"And here we are at your destination," he said teasingly.

"Do your fares include tips?" Alexa jested.

"Haha, no; for you, it's on me," Keith winked.

"Well, thanks for dropping me off, Keith. Really, I appreciate it," Alexa said sincerely as Reese and Ava slid down the back of Robbie's neck to sit just behind his head.

"You're welcome," Keith said nicely. Alexa's smile weakened as she looked up at the plentiful windows at the front of the building; her family's hotel room was somewhere at the higher part of the hotel – it was probably even one of the windows that only just escaped her line of sight.

"I hope they're in..." Keith looked at her with concern. "Dad has the room key." Keith quickly chuckled before clearing his throat; he didn't want to sound inappropriate, now of all times.

"Do you want me to go up there with you?" he offered. Alexa looked over at him with a kind smile.

"Thanks, but...this is something I need to do on me own." Keith's eyes widened slightly; not only did she look more confident about the very idea of facing her father again, but her voice matched the look!

"Are you sure?"

"Positive," Alexa nodded. Keith was a little more surprised than before; she didn't even hesitate in her response! He soon smiled softly and nodded.

"Okay. I'll be sticking around Castelia City for a while; if you go to and wait for me in the Pokémon Centre, I'll be heading there before we go back to Driftveil without a doubt – so, if you need me, that's where I'm guaranteed to end up, okay?"

"I will. Thanks, Keith; you really are so good to me," Alexa said sweetly. Keith walked slightly closer to her and pecked a gentle kiss on her cheek; unlike when the gesture alarmed her outside Troy's Daycare Centre, Alexa smiled and returned the gesture just before Keith could move away from her. Robbie, Reese and Ava smiled at the very healthy interaction between the two teens; Ava was almost moved to joyful tears.

"Good luck," Keith said lovingly.

"Thank you," Alexa said appreciatively as she began to make her way to the hotel's revolving doors. At the exact same time, Keith walked alongside Robbie as they headed back into the city's centre.

Snubbull raised her head expectantly as she saw Robbie walking passed her again and kept a sparkling eye on him as Keith spotted a certain building to his left; XCommunications. Keith began to make his way towards the building, another idea having sprung into his head.

Walking through the hotel lobby made Alexa feel ever so slightly awkward; the last time she was in this uniquely designed foyer was when she stroppily stormed out of her family's hotel room and of the hotel itself during the aftermath of a heated argument. During her steady walk to the elevator doors, she looked at the Florges statue to settle her nerves; she somehow found comfort in looking at the impeccably sculpted statue of the Garden Pokémon and doing so made her smile for a fleeting moment as she eventually arrived at the elevator. Pressing the elevator call button on the wall, the doors quickly opened and allowed her access; she walked into the elevator and pressed another button before the doors closed after her.

As she felt the elevator ascending, she placed a hand over the zip of her belt bag, but halted herself before she could take the zipper in her thumb and index finger; for a blinking moment, she considered going against her word and having Ryder and/or Jollie out of their Poké Balls to be beside her while she reconciled with her family. She looked up at the ceiling, as if she were looking at her inevitable destination, as she contemplated her decision further. She soon removed her hand from her bag and let her arm hang loosely at her side; she was determined to remain true to her word and stared at the doors in front of her with the matching demeanour – once they opened, there was no turning back.

"If that's everything, we might as well get this visit over and done with." Those were the first words Alexa heard from her father as the elevator doors opened. She saw that only one of the hotel rooms in the entire corridor was open; it was obvious that the open door belonged to the family's hotel room. Alexa left the elevator and silently began to walk towards the open door, keeping as close to the wall as possible to avoid being spotted.

"Hayden, you forgot something!" Lily called with a chuckle.

"Did I?" Hayden wondered as he looked back into the hotel room. "ACK!" Hayden ran straight into the hotel room, leaving the door to slowly close behind him by itself. Alexa swiftly and silently ran towards the door and caught it before it could close properly. Keenan looked back at the doorway, noticing the lack of slam, in confusion; he soon disregarded it as Hayden walked over to Lily.

"Honestly, Hayden, are you sure you got enough sleep last night?" she teased.

"S-Sorry," Hayden said sheepishly as he accepted his wallet from his wife. "My head's all over the place, I guess..."

"The only place it should be is on top of your neck, Tiger; that's Human Anatomy 101, bound to be," Lily jested again.

Alexa stood quietly outside the room, hearing the casual banter between her parents; listening to their voices made her feel more relaxed, but hearing the complete absence of strife strengthened her confidence to walk across the threshold. However, she chose to wait a little bit longer and listened intently.

"Hey, Dad? Maybe you need to think one step 'a head' next time," Keenan joked. Hayden raised an eyebrow and smirked at his son's pun.

"You're really resorting to that? Really?" Keenan and Iara laughed at the playful retort.

"Oh, stop it, you two! Besides, that joke's older than my parents combined," Lily said teasingly.

"Et tu, Petal?" Hayden asked playfully.

"Anyway, since we actually have everything this time," Lily began as Alexa slowly and silently moved towards the room's threshold. "I'd say it's time we-"

As all three of them turned to face the doorway, they saw Alexa slowly entering the room, looking exactly like she did when she first left...except...instead of being infuriated with everyone around her...upon her face was a gentle smile and more loving eyes; it was almost as though she was a different person from the day before! Hayden was left utterly speechless at the sight of her and the reality of her presence, Lily smiled with relief and Keenan grinned widely as Alexa's other foot stepped into the room, allowing her to finally let the door go and close behind her.

"ALEX!" Keenan immediately ran towards his sister and flung his arms around her. Alexa very nearly fell backwards as she softly caught her overjoyed baby brother and returned his embrace delicately. "You're back! You're really back!"

"Hey...!" Alexa crouched and lightly touched foreheads with Keenan, finally calming him down a little bit. "I-I'm truly sorry I worried you so much," she apologised remorsefully. When she established eye contact with him, she was slightly surprised to see that his wide grin remained unhindered by her apology.

"I'm just glad you're back!" Alexa stroked the top of his head as she smiled warmly at him.

"Me, too," she whispered. Keenan's eyes lit up; despite what took place little under twenty four hours previously, she meant those words!

"See? I told you she'd come back, didn't I?" Lily said sweetly as she approached her two children. Alexa stood up properly as Keenan fully released her from his hold; Alexa looked into her mother's eyes as she felt more regret, but she didn't let it get the best of her.

"Mum..." Lily walked over to her and cuddled her gently. Alexa returned the hug with the same level of delicacy.

"Oh, sweetheart...!" Despite being proven correct about Alexa's return, Lily finally succumbed to her parental worries as she slightly held onto her daughter tighter. "Are you all right? Did you sleep well last night?! Have you had anything to eat yet?!"

"Yes, o-on all counts," Alexa said before Lily could ask her a third question in her haste.

"I thought you trusted her?" Keenan asked.

"Oh, sweetie, I do, but that doesn't mean I wasn't worried!" Lily soon felt Alexa's grip tightening a little bit.

"I-I'm sorry..."

"Hm?"

"For worrying everyone...and especially for my behaviour..." Lily and Alexa loosened their embrace to look at one another with the same level of remorse in their eyes.

"Ours wasn't any better, sweetheart," Lily said as she placed a gentle hand on her daughter's cheek. "I'm deeply sorry that our negligence drove you away from us..." Alexa gently held her mother's hand as she carefully removed it from her cheek.

"I know you didn't mean it...not really..."

"Of course we didn't, darling...! But doesn't change the fact that it did...and I apologise..."

"...it's all right," Alexa said with acceptance. She soon moved away from Lily and stepped forward to face her astonished father. Keenan, Iara and Lily watched almost anxiously as Alexa began to converse with Hayden.

"...hi, Dad..."

"...Alexa..." Alexa slightly lowered her head in shame and held her right arm with her left.

"I'm sorry...about everything that happened yesterday," she said sincerely. Hayden felt himself quivering in place. "I was wrong to keep you – all three of you – in the dark about Sinnoh for so long...and the way I just stormed out of the hotel like that? ...m-my behaviour was deplorable..." Hayden took one step forward. "...I'm...I'm sorr-"

To Alexa, Keenan and even Lily's surprise, Hayden suddenly and virtually dragged Alexa into his arms as he held her in a loving embrace. To Alexa's horror, however, she could hear her father...crying?!

"L-Lexie... ...I'm so sorry...!" Alexa was at a complete loss for words, knowing his apology, though tearful and shaky, was truthful. "...I'm so, so...so sorry...!" Alexa felt his hand resting on the back of her head, which, oddly enough, seemed to make her feel secure in her father's arms. "...I-I took my anger out on you instead of assuaging your fears...! ...I...i-instead of helping you, I hurt you...and made you feel even worse about yourself...!" Alexa gently wrapped her arms around Hayden's shoulders and neck, unknowingly missing the tender injuries on his back. "...w-what parent even DOES that to their child...?!" Alexa nestled her head softly between his shoulder and neck as she felt her eyes watering; her tears fell from her eyes as they closed lightly. "I'm so sorry, Lexie...! ...I love you so much...!" Hearing those thoughtful words almost made Alexa break into sobs herself, but she stayed strong as she moved one hand to the back of Hayden's neck, almost touching his hair.

"...I love you, too, Daddy..." All of a sudden, Hayden felt as though his heartstrings had been pulled tightly; in a vain attempt to halt his tears, he rested his head on his daughter's and very slightly tightened his hold on her.

"L-Lexie...!"

Seeing the emotional reunion between father and daughter touched Lily as she looked on with tears threatening to escape her eyes. Keenan looked on with a wide grin, though it appeared warmer than the one he wore during his reunion with Alexa. Iara looked on trying not to burst into tears; she held a paw over her quivering mouth as her eyes watered with her tears.

After about half a minute, Hayden finally raised his head from Alexa's, but kept his eyes on her above anyone else in the room.

"...Lily..." Lily looked at Hayden in confusion. "...go on ahead..." Alexa was suddenly confused, but Lily nodded understandingly as she quietly escorted Keenan and the whimpering Iara out of the hotel room; Keenan gave his father a smile before the door closed behind him.

With Lily and Keenan out of the room, Hayden gradually broke his hold over Alexa and brought her over to the sofa; the pair sat next to one another, their bodies partly facing one another and their backs away from the backrests behind them. Hayden wiped his eyes before he made eye contact with Alexa.

"W-Were you all right?" A-After-"

"Yeah..." Alexa wiped her eyes with the heel of her right hand. "I had something to eat before I went to see Keith at Aunt Naomi's hotel..." She felt herself blushing just thinking about what she was about to say next. "...I-I, uh...I spent the night with him..." Hayden was mildly alarmed.

"Was he okay with that?"

"Uh, I-I think so...w-we didn't plan on it, it just...happened... A-Anyway, he, uh...he treated me to breakfast and dropped me off here afterwards..."

"So he took care of you? E-Even after what I did to him?" Alexa nodded, which somehow made Hayden feel both at ease and more remorseful about how brutally he treated Keith. He sighed as he lightly closed his eyes and smiled. "...I'm glad."

"W-What about you?" Alexa asked worriedly. "I-I can't even imagine how much my behaviour hurt you..."

"Not enough to say no to an evening out with your mother," Hayden replied gently. "She took us to The White Swanna on the Village Bridge." Hayden suddenly frowned. "...but it wasn't long before my guilt spoiled things..." Alexa became concerned when Hayden buried his eyes in his palm. "I...I feel rotten, Alexa...rotten and putrid about how I mistreated my daughter..." Alexa was close to devastation; to her, Hayden's guilt was so prominent it could be seen from an aeroplane. "...and...and how I handled everything she told us..." Hayden's arm fell limp over his knees. "Your mother helped me find the resolve to make things right with you, but..."

"But?"

"We got caught up in a scuffle between two wild Pokémon," Hayden continued with a nervous smile. "A Crawdaunt and a Nidoqueen. I gave your mother one of my spare Poké Balls to capture the Nidoqueen before Tidus, Clyde, Tiffany and I defeated the Crawdaunt." Hayden faced the alarmed Alexa. "Now your mother's gone to check on Nidoqueen with Keenan. All three of us were before..." Hayden sighed before smiling warmly and placing a soft hand on Alexa's cheek, stroking it with his thumb. "...I'm really happy you've come back..." Alexa raised an arm towards Hayden's shoulder and back area.

"Me, too, Dad-"

"Aaagh...!" Hayden suddenly flinched as Alexa's hand, though tenderly, touched his back. Alexa quickly recoiled her arm as she looked up at Hayden, almost in fright.

"Dad?!" Hayden chuckled sheepishly.

"Heh, sorry... I forgot to mention; I got hurt during the scuffle." Alexa suddenly hopped both of her legs onto the sofa and knelt directly in front of him as she gave him a panicky look.

"But y-you're all right, right?! Y-You're not bleeding or-" Hayden suddenly, yet softly, stroked his hand across Alexa's head; the confusing timing of the gesture was enough to silence her panicky ramblings.

"No, I'm fine; just a few grazes and a bruise – your mother can attest to that."

"Aw, Dad, why didn't anyone tell me?!" Hayden chuckled; he found her concern touching, yet barely necessary.

"Your mother didn't want us to bother you," he said honestly.

"But, Dad-"

"She wanted us to give you space from us...and for you to come back in your own time." Alexa seemed to calm down as she moved her legs off of the sofa, sitting on it properly again.

"...Keenan freaked out this morning, didn't he?"

"Yep," Hayden replied bluntly.

"Heh; called it."

"Heh," Hayden chuckled. Alexa's amused smirk was short-lived as she suddenly frowned.

"...Dad?" Hayden glanced down at her worriedly, having noticed her sudden change of mood and tone. "I really am sorry about everything..."

"I am, too, Lexie..." Hayden carefully pushed some strands of Alexa's hair away from her face as he looked at her directly with a very solemn look on his face. "...remember what I told you in Join Avenue?"

"Huh?" Alexa looked up at her father in confusion.

"It's unhealthy to be so constantly pessimistic. It's important to remember those words...we both need to...now more than ever..." For some reason she couldn't quite fathom, Alexa began to feel emotional; her eyes began to water and felt sobs in the back of her throat.

"Dadddy...!" Hayden gently pulled her close to him; as Alexa began to nestle into his chest, he began to stroke her back and, consequently, her hair. While secure in his arms, Alexa's sobs died as quickly as they came and she smiled.

"Alexa...I don't want what happened yesterday to happen ever again... I...I want you to know that, despite what happened yesterday, you can talk to me and your mother about anything that's bothering you... ...and I promise not to overreact like that again... But I need you to promise me that, from now on, you tell me if anything – and I mean anything – is on your mind, be it good or bad... Do you promise?" Alexa's smile grew wider, though she felt her tears beginning to irritate her eyes.

"I promise."

 _To be continued..._


	46. Chapter 46

**Chapter Forty Five – Amends**

"That's my girl," Hayden said endearingly as he gently wiped Alexa's tears away before they could fall. He took a deep breath and exhaled silently as he smiled. "What do you say we head down to the Pokémon Centre?" Alexa glanced up at her father from the comfort of his chest in confusion.

"Y-You mean to meet Nidoqueen?"

"Yeah, but mostly to meet up with Keenan and your mother," Hayden chuckled. Alexa lifted herself from Hayden's chest as he finally released her.

"What about afterwards?" she asked.

"What do you mean?" Hayden wondered curiously.

"N-Not just with Nidoqueen, but...in general...where do we go from here?" Hayden smiled sweetly at her.

"What Nidoqueen decides to do will be up to her...and we can decide what we do after visiting the Pokémon Centre once it's over; there's no rush, Lexie." Alexa was perplexed at how placid Hayden had become all of a sudden, but, knowing that she was welcomed back into her family with very open arms, she soon smiled warmly.

"You're right." Hayden placed a hand on her cheek as he smiled at her; he had no idea how she found some of her old confidence again, but was immensely pleased to know that she had it back. He pecked a quick kiss on her forehead.

"Well, then...shall we?" Alexa nodded as she and Hayden stood up from the sofa. To his confusion, Alexa instantly made her way inside her bedroom and ran back to him faster than he could count to five; Alexa sheepishly placed Purukin and Chutney's Poké Balls into the pockets of her jeans.

"Heh, sorry...I want to get my Pokémon looked at while we're at the Pokémon Centre..." Hayden chuckled.

"I'll do the same thing, pumpkin," he said as he and Alexa left the hotel room together, Hayden wrapping and arm around Alexa's shoulders as they walked. Alexa held onto his hand as they began to head for the elevator.

"Dad?"

"Hm?

"I love you." Hayden was initially astonished at her sudden and relatively needless declaration. However, he smiled at the sentiment as he drew her slightly closer to him.

"I love you, too, Lexie. Always have, always will."

"Thank goodness you arrived when you did," the young blonde nurse said shakily as she escorted a baffled Lily and Keenan to one of the Pokémon Centre's recovery rooms; looking through the window looking into the room, Lily and Keenan soon understood the nurse's panic – they saw Nidoqueen glaring angrily at a doctor and another nurse in the room who were attempting to calm her down and avoiding anything Nidoqueen threw at them. Oddly enough, the black fabric that was torn off of Lily's skirt remained around her forearm. "She's been acting like this since she woke up a few minutes ago...!"

"In her defence, she was practically staring death in the face before she was caught," Lily said worriedly. Keenan looked at the Drill Pokémon with worry.

"She's scared and angry; that's a bad mix..."

"Poreon..."

"Let me talk to her," Lily insisted. The panicky nurse nodded.

"O-Okay...y-you are her Trainer, after all..."

"We'll see," Lily muttered as she made her way into the room. "Stay here, sweetie."

"O-Okay," Keenan nodded, obeying his mother's instruction. He and Iara watched Lily and Nidoqueen through the window as the intervention began.

"Nidoqueen?" Nidoqueen stopped herself from throwing a medical dressings trolley at the doctor as she looked over at Lily in bafflement. The pause allowed the doctor and other nurse to relax as Lily slowly began to approach the aggravated Nidoqueen.

"N-Nido..."

"Yes, it's Lily," Lily said kindly.

"Nido, ni..." Nidoqueen's stance relaxed as she faced Lily properly. However, she was as grumpy as ever and was less than pleased to see Lily again. "Nido...?!"

"To talk to you." Lily stopped in her tracks, keeping a reasonable distance between her and the cranky Nidoqueen. "A-About your capture..."

"Niiidooo..." Nidoqueen snarled furiously.

"I know...I know it's not what you wanted, and I'm sorry..." Nidoqueen raised a cautious eyebrow at her. "It was my husband's idea...it was either that or we let Crawdaunt kill you in cold blood."

"Doh," Nidoqueen huffed.

"You don't have to stay as 'my' Pokémon, you know..."

"Doh?!" Nidoqueen faced Lily in horror.

"The choice is yours; I only caught you because we were desperate to save your life. And, now that we have...there's no reason to force you to stay if you don't want to." Nidoqueen stared at Lily with overwhelming surprise. "I promise I won't be offended either way."

"N-Ni... N-Nido...?"

"I'm a firm believer in letting Pokémon think for themselves; it's how I've been raised, how my husband was raised and it's how he and I have raised our children." Nidoqueen spotted the boy and his Vaporeon looking into the room with slightly less anxiety.

"Nido?"

"He's my second-born." Nidoqueen looked at Lily again, appearing to be more relaxed than before. "I promise you...nobody in my family would hurt you any more than they'd hurt any of their Pokémon. That is, if you decide to stay with me; like I said, the choice is entirely yours – it's your life, and I have no right to control it." Nidoqueen looked over at the tiny Vaporeon on Keenan's shoulder and was surprised when Iara waved at her with her paw. Nidoqueen saw how happy Iara looked with Keenan as she waved nervously back at her. Lily waited patiently as Nidoqueen lowered her head in thought as she contemplated her near-death experience and her options; she remembered Lily's kindness towards her and how she essentially sacrificed her skirt to treat the wound on her forearm, but she also recalled how Hayden's Pokémon fought hard against Crawdaunt. The more she thought about the Pokémon she was forced to fight alongside, the more she began to respect their efforts to aid her. Eventually, Nidoqueen faced Lily eye to eye.

"Nido," she nodded confidently.

"Are you sure? I can easily release you and return the Dusk Ball to Hayden-"

"Doh," Nidoqueen said affirmatively. "Nido." Lily smiled.

"If that's truly what you want, then I'd be happy to take you in." Nidoqueen cracked a little smile.

"Nido." Lily momentarily poked her head out of the room and allowed Keenan and Iara to enter, much to Nidoqueen's curiosity.

"Seeing as you'll be staying with us, it's only fair to introduce you to my family, right?" Lily asked as she smiled happily. "This is my son, Keenan."

"Hello," Keenan greeted politely. Nidoqueen smiled at the boy.

"Nido."

Hailey, Colin, Harvey and Naomi sat around Hailey's kitchen table, each with a freshly brewed mug of cappuccino. Colin's Delcatty, Hailey's Jolteon, Harvey's Aipom and Naomi's Flareon were all present in the kitchen, each enjoying a bowl of different coloured poffins. Dexter lay next to a blue and shiny white Sylveon with a red collar hanging from her neck as they shared their poffin bowl; Dexter appeared to be completely content with the Sylveon's company.

"You two are certainly looking chipper this morning," Hailey said observantly. Harvey grinned as he took hold of his cappuccino mug.

"About that...well... Naomi and I have been talking some more last night."

"Oh, really? What about?" Colin asked curiously.

"Initially about everything that happened with Alexa, but...after a while, we started talking about us," Naomi said with a timid smile. Hailey and Colin were startled.

"We're...actually, we're planning to give it another go."

"Really?!" Hailey asked hopefully. "Aw, that would be so sweet! A real life love story!"

"If you like, sis," Harvey chuckled as he took a drink.

"But what made you decide that?" Colin asked. "Not that I'm not pleased for the two of you, but-"

"It's out of left field, isn't it?" Naomi asked in a giggle.

"Pretty much," Colin laughed nervously.

"We HAVE been spending a lot of time together recently, and...I guess we just clicked," Harvey said sheepishly. "So, last night-"

"And this morning," Naomi added sunnily.

"We decided to consider getting back together."

"That really would be so AMAZING I can't even tell you!" Hailey said gleefully.

"Yeesh, who poured chocolate milk in your cereal this morning?" Harvey laughed. "I mean, we heard about the girls from Troy and-"

"The detentions were expected, but a week of them...? We're not so sure," Colin said with uncertainty. "Sounds a tad unfair, if I'm honest..."

"The girls accepted it all the same, though," Hailey smiled. "But, for the most part, my worries must have disappeared overnight; pardon the language, but I have run out of fucks to give Adelina." Her additional response alarmed Harvey.

"Yesterday, you were wondering if any of US told her about the Two-Tone issue...how come you're so calm about it all of a sudden?" he wondered.

"I'm not sure how to explain it...I mean, I went to bed with that worrying me, but...when I woke up this morning, it was like...I dunno, like none of it even happened..."

"You slept like a Togepi," Colin said sweetly. "Heck, you were STILL sleeping as such when I woke up this morning – it was adorable." Harvey smiled.

"Sleep makes everything better."

"Yay sleep!" Hailey rejoiced playfully. Harvey and Colin chuckled, but Hailey spotted Daniel and Rhonda walking down the stairs. "Daniel?" Daniel and Rhonda made their way into the kitchen; Rhonda made her way over to Dexter and the Sylveon as they nuzzled one another affectionately.

"We're just on our way to Striaton Academy, that's all."

"To talk to your sisters?" Colin asked. Daniel nodded.

"Are you sure it's not something you can tell us?" Hailey asked with concern.

"I asked Daphne to ask around to find out if any of the other kids told anyone about..." Daniel pushed his glasses up his nose. "Two-Tone..."

"Aw, baby...don't worry about how she-"

"I-I just need the closure!" Daniel snapped. Rhonda, Dexter and Sylveon looked up at Daniel worriedly. "Once I find out whether or not someone has spread the 'news' outside of the Academy, I'll feel better about it...probably." Colin left his seat and walked over to Daniel, looking squarely into his dual coloured eyes and placing both hands on his son's shoulders.

"We're not going to give Adelina any satisfaction. Regardless of what you find out from Daphne, don't let her knowledge of the incident bother you – it's what she'd want." Daniel sighed and nodded.

"Thanks, Dad." Colin smiled and nodded.

"Off you go, then; before they go back into class for period three." Daniel smiled a little, nodded at his father and looked down at his smiling Umbreon.

"C'mon, Rhonda."

"Umbreon!" Rhonda cheered as she ran alongside Daniel as he sped out of the kitchen.

"Bye, Mum, bye, Dad!" he called quickly. Once the front door slammed behind him, Colin returned to his seat.

"I still can't believe she knows about that," Naomi said worriedly.

"It is unnerving, I'll admit, but worrying about it won't help anything. Until we can't ignore her any longer, I, personally, intend to do just that," Harvey said boldly.

"As will I," Hailey grinned.

Hayden and Alexa entered the Castelia Pokémon Centre, Hayden's arm still wrapped around Alexa's shoulders, just as Lily and Keenan entered the main lobby with the discharged Nidoqueen. Alexa was surprised to see the Nidoqueen so soon, but Hayden was relatively alarmed to see her so content with his wife.

"Hey, you two!" Lily greeted.

"What's going on with Nidoqueen?" Hayden asked as he and Alexa walked over to her and Keenan. Lily smiled joyfully as she looked over at Nidoqueen.

"Hayden, Alexa...this is Roberta."

"Roberta, huh? Heh; good to have you in the family," Hayden said kindly. Roberta nodded at Hayden before looking at Alexa curiously.

"Roberta, this is my daughter, Alexa," Lily said nicely. "Alexa, this is the Nidoqueen I don't doubt your father told you about."

"How do you feel, Roberta?" Alexa asked courteously.

"Nido-ni, Nido," Roberta answered coyly.

"That's good to hear," Alexa smiled kindly. "It's nice to meet you."

"Hey, Alex, maybe Roberta would like to meet Nando!" Keenan suggested. Roberta looked down at the boy in confusion.

"He's my Nidoking," Alexa explained in a light chuckle. "But I think she should meet her own teammates before anything else."

"Yeah, I guess," Keenan laughed nervously. Roberta observed the interactions between her new Trainer and her family with wonder.

"Speaking of which, I want to get mine medically examined," Alexa said quickly as she headed to the reception desk. Lily quickly approached Hayden and pulled him slightly away from Keenan and Roberta.

"How were things up there?" she asked quietly.

"You saw how we came in, Lily." Hayden grinned widely as he tried to hide his excitement. "I have my little Lexie back...!"

"We all have, Tiger," Lily chuckled. "I told you so." Hayden smirked as he playfully pressed her nose with his finger.

"Many times, my dear," he chuckled as he and Lily walked back to Keenan and Roberta as Alexa also returned to the group. "Hey, Lily, do you want your Pokémon looked at as well?"

"Oh, yes, I'd better had," Lily nodded as she and Hayden walked over to the reception desk. Confused, Roberta followed Lily, leaving Keenan and Alexa alone for a little while. Alexa watched Roberta and chuckled.

"You can tell she's never had a Trainer before."

"H-Hey, Alex...?" Alexa looked down at Keenan, worried about his sudden mood change. "I'm sorry..." Alexa crouched down to his level and faced him eye to eye; her kind demeanour did nothing to comfort him.

"For what?"

"If I hadn't asked for your opinion on that photo...m-maybe Xavier would've been okay and...and you wouldn't have had to tell us about Sinnoh..."

"Keenan...if you think you're at fault for asking me what I thought about that photo...then I'm at fault for giving you my thoughts..." Keenan was puzzled and alarmed. "As for the Sinnoh thing..." Alexa sighed. "It had to come out sometime...my biggest regret is keeping it from you, Mum and Dad for so long..."

"...at least...now I know why you were so scared of Pyrex and the Dark Dragon..." Alexa laughed as she pulled Keenan into a cuddle.

"Of all the things to say...!" Iara hopped over to Keenan's other shoulder for the sole purpose of giving Alexa a cuddle herself. "...I'm just sorry you had to find out about my...recklessness like that..." Keenan nestled himself in Alexa's arms.

"I can't judge you...not when I was reckless a few months ago..."

"Please, don't remind me..." The two siblings soon smiled at one another.

"So, are we cool?"

"Of course we are," Alexa said happily as she stroked his hair while she stood up properly. "But let's both promise to try and think before we act, okay?"

"Yep!" Keenan nodded in agreement. Just as Hayden, Lily and Roberta returned to him and Alexa, Keenan spotted Keith entering the Pokémon Centre with Reese, Robbie and Ava through the corner of his eye and drew Alexa's attention to him. Alexa looked over at him and, with a huge grin on her face, dashed over to him and literally flung herself at him before he even noticed she was in the building!

"Whoa! H-Hey, Alexa..." Though caught entirely off guard, Keith held onto the overjoyed girl. "I didn't think you'd be here so soon..." Keenan watched the interaction with his parents and Roberta; Roberta was completely confused, Lily was touched to see Alexa so happy with Keith and Hayden watched somewhat nervously.

"I wanted to have my Pokémon looked at anyway," Alexa said simply as she pecked a quick kiss on Keith's cheek.

"W-What was that for?" Keith chuckled.

"To thank you for convincing me to talk to my Dad." Hayden excused himself from Lily and Keenan's company as he began to approach Keith. "Seriously...I can't thank you enough..."

"You can start with your Xtransceiver number," Keith said playfully as he managed to free himself from Alexa's huggle. He held up his right wrist and showed her his brand new Xtransceiver; it was black and sapphire blue with a blue and dark blue strap that looked like a beautiful underwater abyss – Keith rotated his wrist slowly to allow Alexa a proper view of the strap's design. Alexa's eyes seemed to sparkle as she saw the Xtransceiver.

"You got one!" Alexa practically squealed with joy as she hugged Keith again. "Finally!" Keith laughed, but soon saw Hayden stopping just behind Alexa and looked at him nervously. Noticing his mood shift, Alexa looked up at Hayden worriedly.

"Hello, Keith."

"H-Hi..." Despite how docile Hayden looked, Keith felt timid around him. Robbie in particular felt worried for Keith. Hayden smiled gently at Alexa.

"Would you mind if I borrowed him for a little while?" Alexa returned his smile and nodded in compliance before she carefully escorted Robbie away from Keith. But not before she whispered into the boy's ear.

"He's not angry." Keith nodded nervously as Alexa moved Robbie away from him. Ava tried to leap into Keith's arms, but Alexa caught her instead and whispered something to her to calm her nerves; Ava settled in Alexa's arms as she introduced her, Reese and Robbie to Lily's new addition. Hayden escorted Keith to the quietest part of the waiting area of the Pokémon Centre and sat next to one another on one of the two-seater sofas in the area.

"H-Hayden, I'm-"

"I'm sorry, Keith," Hayden said quickly. Keith was puzzled. "I was...indescribably harsh to you... It wasn't a good day to say the least, but...that was no excuse for how I treated you OR Alexa..." Keith clenched his jeans out of anxiety.

"It...it's okay...I wasn't any better with her myself...and I'm sorry that hearing about that hurt you." Hayden looked over at Alexa; she was happily conversing with Lily, presumably giving her more details about what she got up to in Driftveil.

"Lexie told me you took care of her."

"Of course I did; I love her," Keith said as he felt brave enough to look up at Hayden again. Hayden smiled as he saw Alexa laughing.

"I don't doubt the feeling's mutual." Keith was taken slightly aback when Hayden looked back at him with his gentle smile. "I also wanted to thank you, Keith...for taking care of my little Lexie..." Keith nodded, but his frown grew a little as he looked away from Hayden, worrying him. "I know her overnight stay wasn't planned, but-"

"I got upset," Keith admitted.

"Hm?"

"I...I told her how I grew up with a Dad who barely acknowledged me...until my Mom died, at least..." Hayden felt crushed as he heard about Keith's family matters. "...I used that to make her realise that she's blessed t-to have both of her parents...who love her, no matter what..." Keith was alarmed to feel a sympathetic hand on his shoulder; he looked up at Hayden and saw a look of pity in his eyes.

"...I'm so sorry for your loss... I know what it's like to lose a parent before their time..." Keith felt slightly at ease; he briefly recalled Alexa mentioning her grandmother passing away before she was even born.

"...I'm sorry..."

"Keith... I want you to know that...I want to consider you as a part of this family." Keith was overwhelmed with shock. "And I want you to feel like you're part of the family, too. As such...I want you to promise me that you'll speak to me and/or Lily if anything is bothering you or if you have anything on your mind." Keith felt incredibly touched; despite everything he said and did to Alexa, Hayden was willing to accept him into his family. The idea of being invited to share Alexa's family completely made him tear up.

"H-Hayden..."

"Keenan already does so as and when he feels he needs to and I had Alexa make the same promise recently...so, now, it's your turn to make it if you so wish." Keith could not believe how Hayden was talking to him; the day before, Hayden was ready to tear his head off, but now he was talking to him like his own son! Keith wanted to smile, but he couldn't; he was completely moved to tears by Hayden's sentiment.

"...t-thank you..." Hayden smiled warmly as he pulled Keith into a hug, the last thing the boy was expecting. Nevertheless, Keith held onto him as he tried not to let his despair consume him any more than it already had. While Lily and Keenan were distracted, Alexa looked back Keith and Hayden just in time to see Keith flinging his arms around the back of Hayden's neck. Both Alexa and Ava smiled warmly at the embrace and were themselves almost moved to tears.

 _To be continued..._


	47. Chapter 47

**Chapter Forty Six – A Moment's Peace pt I**

Alexa wiped her eyes and drew her attention to the nurse returning to the reception desk as Hayden and Keith left their seats and made their way over to the rest of the family; as Lily emptied the Poké Ball tray in front of her and reclaimed her five remaining Poké Balls, the nurse placed the two stacked trays on the desk and separated them as Hayden and Alexa walked over to her.

"Here you go; I apologise for the wait," the nurse said courteously as she smiled kindly at the two Trainers. "Dewgong's going to make a full recovery, but try to let her rest for a day or two."

"Thank you," Hayden said politely as he gathered his six Pokémon and returned them to his belt bag. The nurse, meanwhile, redirected her smile towards Alexa.

"Your Wigglytuff and Pachirisu are recovering well, but your Charizard's wings are still tender at the joints, so let him rest for a little while longer. In any case, all three will be right as Rain Dance by tomorrow at the very least."

"Thank you so much," Alexa said graciously as she collected her Poké Balls. The nurse bowed respectfully as she made her way to the back office. Alexa had managed to put away the Poké Balls belonging to Ryder, Jollie and Phoenix before she was left with Purukin's Moon Ball and Chutney's Friend Ball; she held one in each hand as she glanced over at the Pokémon Centre videophones; as with all Pokémon Centre videophones, they are connected to a Poké Ball transferring device – the unusual-looking contraption gave her an idea.

"What's on your mind?" Hayden asked, noticing her sudden silence. She looked up at him with a gentle smile.

"Nothing, I'm just going to get my party changed around," she replied as she compressed the two Poké Balls and shifted the shrunken Moon Ball over to her left hand. Keith watched her curiously as she made her way to the videophone and sat down; he kept his eye on her until Ian's face appeared on the monitor.

"By the way," Hayden began, attracting Keith's curiosity. "What are you doing for the rest of the day?"

"I, uh...I hadn't thought about that," Keith answered as he picked Ava up from the reception desk and held her in his arms; Ava nestled delightfully in his comforting grip. "Before yesterday turned sour, Alexa and I were planning to spend the day in Humilau City."

"Oh, to see the Humilau Water Gardens?" Lily asked with a slight sparkle in her hazel eyes. Keith looked at her in confusion.

"The what?"

"It's Humilau's biggest tourist attraction," Lily explained. "It's pretty self-explanatory as to what a water garden is, but it also has a small selection of aquariums and even a little zoo."

"No, that place hadn't crossed either of our minds the other day," Keith said with a raised eyebrow. "Why do you ask?" Hayden and Lily exchanged nods of mutual agreement before they smiled at Keith.

"We were wondering if you'd like to join us at the Humilau Water Gardens," Hayden proposed. Keith's eyes widened in slight shock.

"What?"

"We were going to spend the rest of the day together, but we didn't exactly establish how we would do so after we were done here," Lily explained.

"Visiting the Humilau Water Gardens does sound like a great idea," Hayden grinned. "And I thought we'd invite you to join us, since it kind of was your idea. Besides, if you're going to be part of the family, we need to start including you a lot more." Keith glanced over at Alexa; she was still sitting in front of the videophone, talking to Ian – he'd just seen Ian smiling kindly at the relieved Alexa.

"Is Alexa going to join you?" he asked.

"Of course," Lily confirmed. "...well, once she knows the plan, anyway," she added with a giggle.

"So, what do you think? Care to join us?" Hayden asked. Keith rubbed the back of his neck shyly.

"I, uh..."

"C'mon, Keith! It'll be fun!" Keenan said encouragingly.

"Don't pressure him, kiddo," Hayden laughed nervously. "You don't have to if you don't want to; I just thought that-"

"N-No, it's fine," Keith smiled quietly. "Thanks; I'd like that." Hayden smiled and nodded.

"Sounds like we have a plan." Keenan immediately ran over to Alexa; she gave off a startled yelp as he wrapped his arms around her from behind. Hayden, Lily, Keith and the Pokémon saw the act, but only Hayden and Lily were chuckling to themselves.

"Keenan, what's-"

"Hey, how's it going, Keenan?" Ian greeted happily.

"Things are much better now, Grandpa!" Keenan replied joyfully as Keith, Hayden and Lily made their way over to the videophone.

"Yes, Alexa's just finished telling me everything," Ian nodded. "It's great to know everything's worked out in the end."

"Hi, Dad," Hayden said merrily. "How are you?"

"I'm still needing to digest everything that Lexie's just told me, but I'm fine in any case," Ian replied. "Keith! It's good to see you again!"

"Y-Yeah, you, too," Keith said coyly.

"So, Lexie, have you decided who you want to swap Chutney and Purukin for?" Ian asked quickly.

"Oh, yeah, right!" Alexa laughed sheepishly. "Layla and Kayla?"

"Sure thing! I'll find them for you," Ian said as he left his seat. With Ian momentarily away from his end of the call, Hayden looked down at Alexa worriedly.

"By 'everything', Lexie, does that include...?" Knowing precisely what Hayden was hinting, Alexa begrudgingly nodded.

"I shortened the whole thing, but, yeah; he knows about Sinnoh as well."

"How did he take it?" Keenan asked.

"Surprisingly well," Alexa replied as a sudden look of perplexity reached her face. "I didn't realise he suspected something happened during my Sinnoh travels this whole time..."

"That's your Grandfather for you," Hayden laughed diffidently. Ian soon returned to his seat with two Poké Balls; one was a standard red and white Poké Ball and the other was a Fast Ball.

"Here they are, Lexie; I gotta say Layla was happier than a Wooper on cloud nine when I told her you wanted her to join you," Ian chuckled.

"I have Ryder with me, so that's hardly surprising," Alexa laughed as she placed the Moon and Friend Balls in the Poké Ball slots underneath the transferring device; faster than anyone could say 'how's tricks?', the Moon and Friend Balls disappeared through the device and were instantaneously replaced by the standard Poké Ball and the Fast Ball.

"And the boys have arrived safely."

"So have the girls," Alexa smiled as she collected both of her Poké Balls. "Thanks, Grandpa!"

"My pleasure, Lexie," Ian said as he looked over to his right hand side with a declining smile. "And I think that's my cue to exit; Kyler's fighting with Harvey's Pansear again."

"That Chimchar never learns to keep a lid on his temper," Alexa sighed. "Well, I should get going as well anyway; thanks for talking with me, Grandpa." Ian looked back at Alexa and smiled warmly.

"Anytime, sweetie. I gotta go before Kyler's parents get involved again...talk to you soon!"

"Bye, Dad!" Hayden said just before Ian ended the communication. Alexa stood up from her seat and stretched her back.

"What's going on?"

"Are you okay with us spending the day at the Humilau Water Gardens?" Lily asked.

"...I never thought of that yesterday," Alexa said shyly. "Sure, sounds great!"

"Keith's coming with us!" Keenan said excitedly. Alexa's eyes almost lit up with complete euphoria.

"Yay!" Keith smiled and laughed as he saw her enthusiasm. Lily quickly released her Gardevoir from her Poké Ball; Cheryl smiled gently at Lily as the two made eye contact.

"Can you take us to Humilau City, please?"

"Gardevoir," Cheryl nodded. She then relaxed as a rainbow glow outlined her entire body; after opening her eyes suddenly, she vanished in the blink of an eye, taking Lily, Alexa, Keith, Hayden, Keenan and the Pokémon with her.

While the rest of the Striaton Academy students were preoccupied with their recreational time in the playing field, Daphne and Peggy conversed with Daniel across the school's fence. Rhonda sat next to Daniel, looking up at him with trepidation as the pair waited for Daphne to speak up. Peggy felt anxious herself, though she couldn't fully understand why.

"Any luck?" Daniel asked. Daphne sighed quietly as she shook her head.

"Nobody in the school said anything about Two-Tone to anyone matching Adelina's description," she answered reluctantly. "I even asked the teachers who dealt with the incident and the one who followed you to the hospital, but..."

"Nobody spoke to Adelina about it?!" Daniel asked in horror.

"No," Daphne nodded begrudgingly.

"I-I didn't think she'd..." Peggy halted herself before she ended up uttering something insensitive.

"It's okay, Peggy, we didn't either," Daphne said gently.

"B-But...it-it makes no sense!" Daniel panicked.

"Daniel-"

"I-I mean...if it never reached her at all, h-how did she even-"

"Stop it!" Peggy cried suddenly. The twins looked down at her in confusion. "A-Adelina...she-she wants us to fall apart! M-Maybe all of this is just another game...? Like what we think she did to Lexa?" Daniel's eyes widened with a sudden realisation.

"Do you honestly think she'd take Two-Tone and use it like a chess piece?" Daphne asked with intrigue.

"Maybe," Peggy nodded shakily. "B-But I thought we weren't going to let her win! I thought we weren't going to think about her anymore!"

"...we won't," Daniel said quietly. All three of the girls looked up at him in puzzlement, especially when they saw him smiling and heard him chuckling. "I've been preaching about that so many times, yet I nearly failed to practise it myself...!"

"Daniel? Are you okay?" Daphne asked worriedly.

"Even Dad gave me a piece of my own advice!" Daniel raised his head and looked up at the sky as he held onto both of his arms; somehow, staring at the clear blue sky settled his anxiety as his smile warmed up slightly. "We're not going to give Adelina any satisfaction; that's what he told me before Rhonda and I left the house...and I almost turned my back on it..."

"So...?"

"She knows about it, but...I'll give it my all to not let it bother me any more than it already has," Daniel said reassuringly as he faced his twin sister eye to eye.

"Umbreon!" Rhonda rejoiced gleefully.

"Thanks, Daphne."

"For what?"

"Asking around." Daphne smiled kindly at her younger brother.

"Sure thing," she nodded. "But I hope this is going to help you get back to who you used to be."

"Here's hoping," Daniel said quietly.

"Danny?"

"Hm? What's up, Pegs?" Daniel asked.

"Do you think everything will be okay from now on?" Peggy asked tensely.

"I wouldn't worry about her, like we've just established; even if she does somehow decide to show her face again, she shouldn't be our problem."

"B-But..." Peggy wasn't so sure; she was still slightly shaken up by Adelina's presence outside the Academy the day Piper evolved into Altaria. "...w-what if she...?"

"It'll be okay, Peggy," Daphne said sweetly. "If she tries anything with us again, we can let the grown ups know and let them deal with her." Peggy looked up at Daphne with a sunny smile.

"Right!" A bell suddenly sounded from the school as the many other students began to make their way inside the building with the supervising teachers.

"Period three's about to start," Daphne sighed.

"Hey, I kinda like Mathematics!"

"It's not the subject that bores me; it's the substitute we've got until Mr. Meyers gets out of hospital," Daphne complained. She and Peggy smiled at Daniel. "See you later!" Daphne said as she and Peggy hurried towards the school doors. Daniel waved at them and waited for them to vanish inside the building before he turned to leave the outskirts of the school grounds. He sighed contently as he and Rhonda made their way through the woodlands.

"I really hope Daphne's right..."

"Umbreon," Rhonda nodded in agreement.

The very heart of the Humilau Water Gardens was thriving with vibrantly coloured flora of all kinds and tourist activity. While most of the visiting tourists were resting, there were a couple of visitors sitting at the long pool of water, with two Milotic water fountains at each end, in the middle of the entire plaza; a scarlet haired girl sat next to a boy with his brunette hair hidden under his white baseball cap as they spoke about their two Vivillon, one Monsoon patterned and the other River patterned with half of one leg missing, and of their exploits, while two other girls, one with black hair and moderately brown skin and the other with relatively wavy brunette hair, sat next to one another as they happily watched their Totodile and Swanna swimming in the water. At the other end of the pool, Reese and Iara were also swimming in the pool; Ava happly sat on Reese's back and watched the numerous Finneon, Goldeen and Barboach swimming underneath the water's surface. Robbie, meanwhile, was sitting nearby, keeping an eye on the swimming Pokémon. Hayden, Lily and Keenan each sat on one of the many white wicker chairs scattered all across the indoor plaza, while Keith and Alexa sat next to one another in front of one of the palm trees planted around the pool; everyone, however, seemed to be enjoying themselves.

"Really?! Troy's Pokémon was in a movie!?" Keith asked with surprise.

"His Golurk, yes; he played the villain's Pokémon in the film we watched on our first day in Unova – A Hero's Rising," Hayden explained.

"Was it any good?" Keith asked curiously.

"No," all four of the Thorndyke's bluntly replied harmoniously. Keith blinked in confusion.

"Seriously, just...avoid it," Keenan groaned. "Not even Peggy, one of our cousins, enjoyed it, and she's eight years old!" Keith raised an eyebrow.

"And her age is relevant because...?"

"The film tried to target her age demographic," Alexa explained. "Instead, it tried too hard to pander to it that it didn't appeal to said demographic."

"But, after that failed fairy tale parody," Hayden continued on a lighter note. "We spent the next day at Undella beach."

"I got to see the Abyssal Ruins," Alexa said with delight. "They were more amazing than I thought they would be!"

"Find anything good?" Keith asked with a smile.

"I did, actually," Alexa replied, facing him directly. "I found a copper coin that I sold to Undella's antique dealer; I got a grand for it...most of which I haven't really touched..."

"Most?"

"A tenth of that grand went towards her Xtransceiver," Hayden grinned. "While she was choosing it and her strap, I made the arrangement to meet with the XCommunications CEO, with whom I had a meeting just before yesterday's unpleasantries."

"Then there was the battle Alex and I had with our twin cousins!" Keenan said eagerly. Keith faced Alexa with alarm.

"You had a battle?"

"That was sometime after our...rocky encounter, shall we say," Alexa said timidly. "Kyle and Jollie tag-teamed against our cousins' Plusle and Minun."

"Mary and Paul put up a good fight, but Kyle and Jollie won the battle," Keenan said rather proudly.

"Aw, man, I wish I could've seen that!" Keith playfully pouted. "...actually, I mean that; I've not seen you in a proper battle," he continued as he faced her again.

"But you've seen me-"

"Emphasis on proper," Keith stated clearly. "I don't think Cain and Jordan really count."

"Okay, I'll give you that one," Alexa said sheepishly.

"How was the battle anyway?" Keith wondered.

"Considering what took place beforehand, I think Lexie-" Before Hayden could even begin sharing his thoughts on the subject, Alexa's Xtransceiver emitted a generic ringing tone as an incoming voice-only transmission was being picked up. Alexa apologised quietly and answered the call.

"Hello?"

"Hello, Miss Thorndyke? It's Nurse Hardy from the Mistralton Pokémon Centre." Suddenly, everyone felt tense, including Alexa.

"Hello..."

"I'm just calling to let you know that your Zoroark is fully conscious," Nurse Hardy said cheerfully, much to the relief of Alexa and everyone around her.

"Is he okay?" she asked rather quickly.

"His CT came back clear, which suggests that the procedure was successful, but he was complaining about his limited movement. His speech, however, seems to be slower than it should be, but he's still coherent."

"I-I'm on my way to see him now," Alexa said in mild panic.

"See you soon," Nurse Hardy said politely before hanging up on Alexa. After the communication ended, Alexa suddenly stood up.

"Dad, I-"

"It's okay, we understand; go and see him," Hayden smiled. Alexa smiled gratefully and bowed courteously.

"Thanks, Dad!"

"How are you going to get there? Phoenix isn't clear for flying," Keenan said worriedly.

"Maybe Robbie can take you there?" Keith suggested.

"No, honey, it's too far for Robbie to travel on foot," Lily stated. "Lexie, Cheryl can get you to Mistralton and back in no time flat."

"Are you sure?" Alexa asked as she looked at her mother.

"Absolutely."

"Thank you, Mum! I-I'll be as-"

"No, take as long as you need," Hayden said kindly. "We're not going to leave without you," he said endearingly as Lily released Cheryl from her Poké Ball; with her Gardevoir outside, Lily tossed the Poké Ball over to Alexa, who caught it in just her left hand.

"Wish him well from the rest of us, sweetheart."

"I will. Thank you."

"Cheryl? Can you take her to Mistralton Pokémon Centre please?" Lily requested.

"Gardevoir," Cheryl nodded as she held Alexa's hand gently. In the blink of an eye, Cheryl and Alexa vanished into thin air. Keenan stood up from his chair and stretched his back.

"Mum, I'm just going to get a drink."

"Okay, sweetie," Lily smiled.

"I'll go, too," Keith said as he stood up. Robbie watched Keith as he walked over to Keenan. "I'm kinda parched myself," he chuckled.

"Just don't get lost; this place is bigger than I thought it would be," Hayden laughed as the two boys left the plaza. With Keith and Keenan momentarily absent, Hayden began to fiddle with his Xtransceiver.

"What are you doing?" Lily asked.

"Getting in touch with Harvey and Hailey."

Piper was still flying in the sky above the Route 3 Daycare Centre alongside Zane. In the paddock, meanwhile, Troy knelt near the slightly slimmer and oddly exhausted Purugly as he used a stethoscope to examine the pale grey and white egg in front of him. Perri lay next to the panting Purugly, quietly comforting the new mother. Michael sat in front of Troy and kept his watchful eye on the egg. Troy's examination came to a sudden halt as his Xtransceiver emitted an upbeat piano tune; Michael scooted slightly closer to the egg and drew it closer to him with three of his tails as Troy picked up the incoming call – he was both surprised and delighted to see Alexa's face appearing on the screen.

"Troy-"

"Hey, Alexa! You doing okay?" Alexa rolled her eyes. "Keenan told me you-"

"I came back this morning and I patched things up with my Dad, yes, but that's not why I'm calling," she said hastily. Troy was confused. "It's Xavier; he's awake." All of a sudden, Michael and Perri watched Troy as he spoke to Alexa, interested and nervous about the subject matter.

"I-Is he okay?!" Troy asked worriedly.

"I'm about to go in and see him, but the nurse told me his procedure was successful, his speech is slow and was complaining about his movements being limited."

"But thank Arceus he's alive," Troy sighed with relief.

"I just thought I'd let you know in case you wanted to see him," Alexa said kindly.

"Thanks for the thought, but, uh...I-I don't think I can make it today," Troy said nervously. "One of the Daycare Pokémon laid her egg not too long ago."

"Aww, congrats!"

"Yeah, but I'm kinda worried about whether or not her Trainer will accept the egg...especially since I now know it's twins," Troy added with a slightly wider grin.

"Aww, how cute! But don't worry about not seeing Xavier today; I highly doubt he'll be discharged today and—oh, dammit, I forgot to get a new Poké Ball for him...!" Troy chuckled.

"Well, it's good to know you're doing okay at the very least," he said caringly. "And thanks for letting me know; Perri and Michael appreciate the sentiment."

"Xavier's their son; why wouldn't they?" Alexa grinned. "I gotta go; I only have a half hour visiting time slot."

"Say hi to him from all of us," Troy winked.

"You know it! See you later, Troy!" As soon as Alexa hung up, Troy spotted Piper darting towards the ground, veiled almost entirely in brilliant red flames; the Altaria soared back into the sky before her beak could touch the ground beneath her as her flames began to die. Troy and Zane both watched Piper's execution of the Sky Attack technique and smiled at her proudly; Piper's training was starting to pay off.

 _To be continued..._


	48. Chapter 48

**Chapter Forty Seven – A Moment's Peace pt II**

Hailey stood in her back garden, carefully looking at the three Pokémon in front of her with her Bellossom, Eric standing on her head. Josh, Hailey's green-eyed Swampert, looked particularly nervous with the silent cross-examination, while Dexter and a Volarona with an unusual red ember-shaped birthmark on its forehead appeared to show little to no regard for the looks Eric and Hailey were giving them.

"Bellossom?" Eric asked as he bounced down to Hailey's shoulder.

"I dunno, Eric...it's so hard to choose," Hailey said quietly as she allowed Eric to hop onto her palm before jumping onto the grass. "Hmmm...I guess I could let Josh have a turn this time."

"Swah?!" Josh was rattled.

"C'mon, Joshie, you haven't had a turn in ages!"

"Swah?!" Josh asked as he shrugged.

"Then again, Flint hasn't had a go for a while either..."

"Volcaaaa," Flint said laxly as he hovered in place.

"You're never bothered about anything, are you, Flint?" Hailey asked in a sigh.

"Rona," Flint shook his head in response, leading Hailey to groan slightly.

"How am I supposed to make my next Contest appearance if I don't know how to make it?!" she complained. Ultimately, she looked over at her Jolteon and frolicking Bellossom. "Dexter, Eric, what do you think?"

"Swampert, swam-swam?" Josh wondered.

"Because Eric made his appeal last time and Dexter appeared the time before that," Hailey said in response to her Swampert's query. "I'm trying not to be redundant if I can help it."

"Jol-jol, Jolteon."

"I know some Co-Ordinators have a signature Pokémon, but I have half a dozen of them," Hailey said with a sunny smile. "As much as I like having a team of stars, it's always difficult to choose which one will shine. Which brings me to reiterate what you and Eric think; who do you think should shine this time?" Dexter and Eric exchanged perplexed looks before ever so slightly turning their backs on Hailey as they quietly discussed their thoughts in low murmurs. After a few seconds, the pair faced Hailey again.

"Bellossom," Eric grinned.

"Jolt," Dexter said bluntly. Hailey was baffled.

"So Eric says Annabelle and Dexter says Brie...this helps me because...?"

"Bellaaah," Eric apologised sheepishly.

"Jol-teon?"

"I kind of expected a more unanimous agreement," Hailey pouted. "Mainly between Josh or Flint; I didn't expect Annabelle and Brie to be thrown into the mix! Now I have too much choice!" she complained. Dexter sniggered just as Hailey's Xtransceiver suddenly emitted an upbeat piano tune. Hailey lifted up her arm and accepted the incoming transmission from Hayden; his smiling face appeared on the central screen while the hidden screen shot out of the device's left hand side to reveal Harvey's grinning face and his Aipom's usual playful smirk.

"Hey, good to see everyone!" Harvey laughed.

"What do you guys want?" Hailey asked in a chuckle. "I'm in the middle of a Contest conundrum."

"I just thought I'd let you know; Alexa's back," Hayden said joyfully.

"Ah, really?!" Hailey asked with glee. "Aw, Hayden, that's great!"

"When did that happen?" Harvey asked curiously.

"This morning," Lily explained as she leaned on Hayden's shoulder to view the Xtransceiver herself; Hayden wrapped his arm around her. "We were heading out to the Pokémon Centre when she just...walked in, I guess," she chuckled. "Now we're all spending the day together."

"Humilau Water Gardens, I take it?" Hailey presumed, noticing some of the flora behind Hayden's head.

"Yep," Hayden nodded. "But Alexa's not here right now; Cheryl went with her to the Mistralton Pokémon Centre to see Xavier – he's awake."

"Oh, thank Arceus!" Harvey sighed with heavy relief. "Is he okay?"

"All we know at the moment is that he has the usual head injury side effects; limited movement and slight speech problems," Hayden replied.

"I shouldn't think he'd be allowed to battle for quite a while after his discharge," Lily added with mild concern.

"That doesn't surprise me," Hailey agreed.

"The important thing is things are finally starting to look up," Harvey said optimistically.

Harvey stood outside the Nacrene City limits with Naomi at his side with a solid white carrier bag in one hand; like Harvey, Naomi, too, wore an optimistic smile on her face, having heard the relieving news of Alexa's return and Xavier's recovery.

"Here's hoping I don't regret saying that later on," Harvey chuckled nervously.

"Let's just enjoy what peace we have," Lily laughed.

"I second that, Lily," Hailey beamed.

"Anyhow, I should go; Naomi and I are on our way to see Troy."

"I should go as well; I'm trying to get my head around planning my next Contest appearance," Hailey said with slightly less enthusiasm.

"Don't know what to do?" Hayden queried.

"No; too much choice," Hailey groaned.

"You're always spoilt for choice, so what else is new?" Harvey teased. "I'll let you get on with that, though, and I'll let you enjoy your day, Hayden."

"Thanks, Harvey," Hayden and Hailey said simultaneously.

"Take care, bros," Hailey grinned.

"Bye, Hailey," Harvey and Hayden said in unison as they disconnected at the exact same moment. Harvey lowered his arm as he and Naomi began to walk further down Route 3.

"I'm glad that everything's worked well for Hayden."

"Hey, c'mon...did you really think Chick would leave her family at the drop of a hat?" Harvey laughed.

"I don't know her very well," Naomi said bashfully. "I actually think I know Keith better than I know Alexa...which is actually kind of sad in a way; I know my niece's boyfriend better than I know my niece herself!"

"Don't exaggerate, angel," Harvey chuckled as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Besides, I don't doubt that you'll get to know Alexa – as well as your other nieces and nephews – a lot better from this point on."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Naomi giggled as she and Harvey saw the Daycare Centre not too far away. From afar, they saw Troy looking over at something in front of Michael, though they couldn't see what it was Troy was looking at because of the Ninetales in front of him. However, as they approached the fence near the main building itself, Daniel and Rhonda were coincidentally passing the exact same spot.

"Hey, Daniel!" Harvey greeted with a light laugh. "How're you doing?" From the paddock, Troy looked up as soon as he heard his father's voice and suddenly lit up even more.

"I'm okay, Uncle Harvey," Daniel said courteously as he crouched down to lift his Umbreon off of the ground and hold her in his arms. "I didn't like what Daphne had to say, but I'm trying to get over it."

"Why, what'd she say?" Troy asked as he walked over to the fence. Laddy looked over at the paddock and saw Michael carefully nudging the egg over to Purugly, who smiled warmly as she accepted her yet-to-hatch offspring.

"Nobody in the school told Adelina about Two-Tone," Daniel said bluntly.

"How odd..."

"Don't worry about it, Naomi; remember what we agreed on," Harvey smiled.

"I almost didn't," Daniel admitted. "Anyway, what brings you out here?"

"Oh, yes, that's right!" Naomi faced her son and handed him the white carrier bag. "Here; I thought these would be nice for your Pokémon." Troy accepted the bag and looked inside; he saw an assortment of Pokémon treats, including Pokémon chocolate bars, biscuit bites and dental chews.

"Thanks, but I'm already well stocked on-"

"I said YOUR Pokémon, baby," Naomi laughed.

"Oh! R-Right...thanks!" Troy laughed bashfully. "Oh, yeah, Alexa called me a little while ago; she-"

"We know, sport; she's back and Xavier's awake," Harvey grinned.

"Hold on, Alexa's back? What does that mean?" Daniel asked in confusion.

"She spent last night in Driftveil," Harvey said quickly. "She...well...let's just say she wasn't a happy Buneary when she left..."

"Was that because of Adelina's blackmailing?" Daniel wondered.

"Eh?" Harvey raised an eyebrow.

"Keenan called me and told me she threatened Alexa with something."

"No, the reason she left wasn't really down to that bi-"

"Harvey!" Naomi snapped quietly, cutting off his profanity. He quickly gave Naomi a sheepish smile before looking back at his nephew with concern.

"She ran off because we kept something hidden from her for too long after Hayden called her out on keeping something from him for too long."

"So she called you out on your hypocrisy?" Daniel asked bluntly. Troy was about to snap at the teenager.

"Yep," Harvey nodded. "Turns out she spent the night at the Driftveil Star Hotel...with Keith," he added with a sly wink.

"Huh; I wonder how that went," Daniel muttered curiously to himself.

"ZORR!" Suddenly, everyone looked towards the paddock just in time for Purugly's egg to shine in a divine white light. They watched with fascination as the egg divided into two separate lumps that formed into two different Pokémon; after the glow faded, one of the Pokémon was a Glameow with its front paws being completely pale grey and the other was a Piplup with white toes. The twin newborns looked up at their mother Purugly as soon as she nuzzled both of them, happily purring as she felt them nuzzling back at her.

"...what is it with this family and twins...?" Harvey asked quietly. Troy chuckled, but Naomi, Laddy, Daniel and Rhonda watched the bonding between the mother Purugly and her offspring quietly.

Xavier lay on the surprisingly soft hospital bed in a Pokémon Centre patient recovery room with a bandaged wrapped around his bald head, looking at the regretful Alexa pitifully. Phoenix stood just behind Alexa, a comforting hand resting on her shoulder. Jollie sat on Xavier's chest, looking just as sympathetic as her surrogate little brother. Ryder and Layla stood on the opposite side of Xavier's bed, holding onto one another as they rather anxiously kept their eyes on Alexa; Ryder looked equally as guilty as Alexa while Layla was almost devastated. However, the Luxray, with the tips of her short mane coloured blue, that sat next to Layla appeared relatively indifferent to the tense atmosphere in the room.

"And that's...that's what you got hurt over," Alexa sighed.

"I knew it was bad, but damn..." Xavier's speech, though perfectly normal in pitch, was somewhat slower than normal. "I...dunno how to respond to that..."

"I'm sorry, Xavier...I didn't say anything to anyone else about it when I should have and you paid the price..."

"Eh...?"

"Alex, c'mon, it wasn't your fault," Ryder said gently.

"Maybe...but, on the other hand..."

"The mutant calamari," Xavier concluded. Alexa nodded sadly.

"You got hurt because Carter tried to attack me...I'm so sorry...!"

"C'mon, girl..." Xavier raised his arm shakily and almost slapped his hand on the Alexa's other shoulder. "Don't blame yourself for what the mutant calamari was told to do..."

"But you-"

"Hey...who else was going to bail you out?" Xavier asked with a frown. "I was the fastest one on the battlefield; I was the only one who could get to you in time..."

"B-Buneary...!" Jollie whimpered. Xavier smiled comfortingly at the little rabbit sitting on his chest.

"I dunno, sis... You're strong, but the Muk-muncher's a fully evolved Pokémon..."

"Buneary..." Jollie sighed submissively.

"I just wish it didn't take you almost dying to finally tell my parents about Sinnoh..."

"Everything's okay now, though, right...?" Xavier said kindly. "Isn't that the important thing...?" Ryder was perplexed, especially when he saw Alexa's slightly bashful smile.

"Yeah...everything worked out well in the end..."

"Glad to hear it..." Xavier suddenly swallowed quite forcefully, much to Alexa's alarm.

"What's wrong?"

"I hate dry throats..."

"I'll get a nurse," Ryder offered.

"No need to; I stocked up on supplies yesterday – I have some Fresh Water for you," Alexa beamed as she immediately spun her belt bag around her waist and sat the pouch on her lap before opening it. Xavier chuckled.

"You're an angel..." However, as soon as the bag was fully unzipped, Alexa saw something that baffled her and pulled the alien item in question out of the bag for all six of her Pokémon to see; a snow white gift box wrapped with an emerald green ribbon.

"When did you get that?" Ryder asked as he saw Alexa blindly handing Xavier a bottle of Fresh Water from her bag.

"I didn't," Alexa replied quietly. Seeing the gift, Layla and Jollie suddenly smiled excitedly.

"Bun, bun, bun!" Alexa looked at her Buneary in confusion.

"What, now?"

"Nyah, nyah!" Layla said keenly.

Alexa placed the box on the edge of Xavier's bed and carefully pulled the ribbon off of the box. Kayla walked over to Alexa as she placed the ribbon to one side and pulled the lid off of the box; inside the box was a jet black foam insert that was moulded to the shape of the product inside – a pair of Gracidea flower hair clips made with high quality felt. Alexa was completely speechless as she saw her the accessories, but a huge smile swiftly made its way onto her face. She took one of the clips out of the box and examined it; she couldn't tell whether they were an officially manufactured product or hand-crafted – they looked incredibly well-made! Ryder, however, was now confused in more ways than one.

"What are they?"

"They're hair clips!" Alexa said with sheer delight. "Oh, they're beautiful...!" Layla scurried over to Alexa's left hand side to get a better view of the hair accessories.

"Are you sure you didn't get them yourself?" Ryder asked as Jollie took the remaining clip from the box.

"Trust me, I'd remember seeing something as amazing as this..." Jollie and Layla glanced over at one another with slightly mischievous smirks.

"Bun!"

"Whuh?!" Without warning, Jollie and Layla each grabbed the locks of hair that hung down the side of Alexa's face and pulled them towards the back of her head. Before she knew it, the two Gracidea hair clips were placed on either side of her head just above her ears. Baffled, Alexa touched the sides of her head and felt the two clips in place. Layla and Jollie looked at Alexa directly and their already wide smiles grew even wider as they admired what they did with her hair. "Uh...thanks?"

"Nyaaaaaah~!" Ryder smiled as he saw how the clips looked on Alexa.

"Hey, that actually makes you look pretty!"

"You mean she wasn't before?" Xavier jested.

"You know what I mean," Ryder jeered. "But, seriously, where did you get them from?"

"I dunno, I-" Alexa suddenly remembered the only moment where she left her pack unattended. "Keith!"

"What about him?" Xavier wondered.

"He must have slipped it into my pack when I went to get dressed!"

"What the heck are you talking about?" Ryder asked.

"I, uh..." Alexa felt herself blushing and smiling rather timidly. "...I visited his hotel room last night and...I...ended up sleeping with him..." Ryder's eyes widened with surprise, but was left speechless. Kayla, once again, appeared indifferent about the matter, but Layla and Jollie grinned widely with excitement. Phoenix, however, appeared to be curious about the whole thing.

"Does that mean you're expecting an egg now?" Xavier asked with a wide grin. All of a sudden, Alexa felt immensely embarrassed and hid her face from her Pokémon, burying it in her hands.

"Urgh! Xavier! That's not even the right term for it!"

"Rhrrgh?"

"NO!" Alexa snapped immediately as she looked up at her Charizard. "We fell asleep before we could get that far!" Phoenix chuckled at her embarrassment. "DON'T LAUGH AT ME!"

"So you don't like that you slept with him?" Xavier wondered.

"I didn't say that!" Alexa retorted.

"So you do?" Xavier asked, slyly raising an eyebrow. Alexa recoiled slightly.

"I dunno, it... ...I don't know..."

"Bun-buneary?" Jollie asked curiously.

"It-it's like I said to Keith over breakfast; it felt kind of wrong, since we didn't resolve anything about our relationship while I was at his room, but...I enjoyed it at the same time..."

"...do you even HAVE anything to resolve at this point?" Ryder asked suddenly.

"That's what I asked him!" Alexa exclaimed in bafflement. "...he just told me to ask myself that question..."

"From the sound of it, I don't think you have anything to resolve," Xavier said kindly.

"Rhrrrgh," Phoenix growled in agreement, smiling dotingly with his hand still on Alexa's shoulder. Alexa saw Layla, Kayla and Jollie shaking their heads, agreeing with Xavier's opinion. She looked over at Ryder, who ultimately smiled warmly at her as his tail began to wag slowly. She smiled shyly as she touched one of her new hair clips again; she truly did love and appreciate her gift and practically accepted it without a hint of hesitation – maybe Xavier was right.

 _To be continued..._


	49. Chapter 49

**Chapter Forty Eight – A Moment's Peace pt III**

Keenan and Keith returned to the plaza, Keith carrying three different coloured drinks bottles in his arms and Keenan carrying a small plastic bag in addition to his pink and white milkshake bottle. While Keenan instantly sat near Robbie at the plaza's central pond and distributed the chocolate from the carrier bag between each of the present Pokémon, Keith made his way over to the more relaxed Hayden and Lily, where he offered them two of the bottles in his arms.

"Here; we got these for you," Keith said kindly as he held the cola bottle in front of Hayden. Hayden accepted the bottle from Keith, allowing him to present Lily with the lemonade bottle.

"Thank you, that's very kind of you," Lily said sweetly.

"You really didn't have to, though, but, yes, thank you," Hayden smiled nervously.

"It was Keenan's idea," Keith said as he carefully opened his orangeade bottle. "So, what'd we miss?" he asked as he took his original place in front of the palm tree opposite Hayden and Lily.

"Nothing much, really; I've not long since spoken to my brother and sister – y'know, just to let them know about Lexie."

"Are they okay?" Keith wondered.

"Oh, yeah, they're perfectly fine," Hayden said happily. "Harvey's been spending quite a lot of time with his ex-wife, though...still don't know what instigated that..." Keith smiled rather smugly. "Meanwhile, Hailey said she was in the middle of something she calls the Contest conundrum." Keenan suddenly looked back at his parents.

"So Aunt Hailey's going to re-enter the Nimbasa Contest?" he asked. As Hayden, Lily and Keith faced Keenan, Keith chuckled to himself as he saw Ava nibbling on her chocolate; she was sitting on Reese's belly as she consumed her treat, which allowed the Buizel to eat his own chocolate.

"I would imagine so," Hayden shrugged as Lily finally opened her lemonade bottle. "Though I don't know what the conundrum itself was; I didn't think to ask... It's probably who she'll use in the Contest again..." Keith looked back at Hayden and Lily.

"About the Naomi thing..."

"Hm?" Hayden was confused.

"I know what instigated it; I did," Keith said shamelessly. Hayden and Lily looked at one another in confusion, while Keenan was surprised.

"What did you do?" he asked.

"I just told Naomi to talk to Harvey, that's all; whatever followed was down to her," Keith said casually as he took a drink from his bottle. Lily was equally as surprised as Keenan, but Hayden laughed quietly.

"And you told her that without thinking about it?"

"Yeah, kinda; she gave me some advice a little while ago and, in return, I told her to talk to her ex. I told her not to be afraid if she ended up falling for him all over again, but I didn't think it'd actually happen!" Keith laughed bashfully.

"I don't think Harvey or Naomi thought it would either," Hayden sniggered as he eventually opened his cola bottle. Keenan turned around to watch Iara as she swam gracefully in the pond.

"It is nice that they're spending more time together, though," Lily commented as Keith looked back at Ava. "Naomi's really nice...makes me wonder why she didn't decide to keep herself included with the family after the divorce..."

"Wouldn't that be just a little awkward, though?" Hayden wondered as Lily sipped some of her lemonade. "I know neither one hated the other's guts afterwards, but they were awkward around one another for quite a while..."

"Good point," Lily sighed. "Hm? Keith, what's the matter?"

"Huh?" Keith looked back at Lily in confusion; he was surprised to see her slightly worried about him. "No, I'm fine; I was just wondering something, that's all."

"What's on your mind?" Hayden asked as, through the corner of his eye, he saw Keenan accidentally dropping his unopened milkshake bottle in the pond; Iara swiftly recovered it and the pair had a light laugh about the incident – at least the milkshake was slightly colder than it was before!

"Do you think Alexa would be able to-...or, rather, willing...to help get Ava trained up a bit?" Keith asked tensely. "Troy gave Robbie and Reese some battle training some time ago and...I was wondering if Alexa would do the same for Ava." Keenan looked back at Keith as he pulled his red T-shirt off, revealing his brown long-sleeved shirt underneath, and used it to dry his milkshake bottle.

"Ryder trained Reese first, right? I don't see why Alex wouldn't help you with Ava's training," he said as he finally opened his milkshake.

"But, to be perfectly honest, you're far better off asking Lexie yourself," Hayden stated. "Though I do agree with Keenan; I don't see why she wouldn't either."

Colin walked out of the house and into the back garden, only to find Hailey looking between four of her six Pokémon; though her back was turned against him, he could tell that Hailey was struggling with whatever decision she was hoping to try and make. He chuckled as he approached her.

"What's the trouble this time, Honeybee?" Hailey spun around and confronted Colin, looking just as conflicted as before.

"I don't know who to use for my next appearance," she explained as calmly as she could. Dexter couldn't help but snigger at Hailey, though she took very little notice of her laughing Jolteon. "I have too much choice!"

"Better that than no choice at all, surely?" Colin smiled as he handed Hailey a bottle of Lime Cola; her eyes seemed to sparkle as she accepted the drink from her generous husband. "But, if you want my advice, do what you always do."

"Sleep on it?" Hailey wondered as she opened her bottle.

"That's not what I was thinking, but I guess that can work as well," Colin laughed nervously as he watched Hailey guzzling down almost half of her favourite soda in one fell swoop. "No, I was thinking you could consider what kind of performance you want to give."

"That helps," Hailey sighed sardonically. "I still have a lot of choice! I mean, all six of my Pokémon have their own styles, which makes it hard for me to choose which one to use!"

"Well, what kind of performance do you feel like giving?" Colin asked rationally.

"What kind of performance do I feel like giving...?" Hailey repeated Colin's question to herself as she looked over at her Pokémon again. "Hmmm...I want to leave a powerful impression, but I don't want it to be predictable..." she said quietly as she took another drink from her cola bottle.

"How would it be predictable?" Colin wondered.

"Some Pokémon are as powerful as they look," Hailey explained. "Y'know, like Joshie."

"Swam-pert...!" Josh rubbed the back of his neck nervously as he blushed, flattered by Hailey's ever-so-subtle compliment.

"So you want to make a powerful impression, but you don't want others to know that's what you're going for?" Colin guessed. "You want to mislead your audience?"

"That's it!" Hailey exclaimed with glee, throwing Colin and the Pokémon off guard. "I can use Brie – just like Dexter said!"

"Jolt!" Dexter smirked proudly. Eric rolled his eyes at his compadre's smug attitude.

"Brie? You're not going to try her Aqua Tail/Shock Wave combination again, are you?" Colin wondered as he briefly scratched the base of his neck. "Or do you plan to master that Seed Bomb/Tail Slap combo that became the Aqua Tail/Shock Wave mix?"

"No, I have something less circus act-ish in mind," Hailey said casually as she took the green and black Poké Ball from her pocket. She looked at the Dusk Ball as a cunning grin made its way onto her face. "I do, however, plan on raising a storm..." Colin laughed nervously, Hailey's smirk giving him the creeps.

"If-if you say so, Honeybee...good to see you're being so enthusiastic about the Contest again, though."

"Thanks, Colin!" Hailey said merrily as she opened the Dusk Ball. The dazzling white light shot out of the capsule and formed into a completely grey Cinccino wearing a gold head chain with a cute little sapphire heart in the very centre of the accessory.

"Cinno?" Hailey smiled at her Cinccino.

"Okay, Brie...I know you haven't been in a Contest for almost a year, but now it's your time to shine!" Brie huffed and folded her tiny little arms as she pouted.

"Cin-cinno-cin-cin!"

"No, we're not trying to make you juggle Seed Bombs again," Hailey laughed. "That'll never work anyway..."

"Cin," Brie nodded in agreement.

"But...I have bigger plans," Hailey smirked. Brie looked up at Hailey with intrigue, the same smirk making its way onto her own face.

"Cinno..."

As Keith lifted Ava off of Reese's belly, allowing the Buizel to vacate the pond safely, a white light flashed briefly as Cheryl and Alexa returned to the plaza. As all attention was drawn to the arrivals, everyone immediately noticed the pair of Gracidea hair clips on either side of Alexa's head; trying not to let their stares get the better of her, Alexa walked over to her mother's chair and handed a Poké Ball to her.

"H-Here's Cheryl's Poké Ball...thank you for letting me borrow her," Alexa said quietly before looking over at Cheryl with a slightly more relaxed smile. "Thanks for taking me to Mistralton, Cheryl."

"Gardevoir," Cheryl said kindly as she gave Alexa a sweet smile.

"Is Xavier doing all right?" Lily asked curiously.

"Y-Yeah, he's okay. He's struggling to move and talk normally like the nurse said, but, other than that, he seems to be his usual self."

"That's good to hear," Lily said sweetly.

"In other news, when and where did you get those?" Hayden asked in a small chuckle. "They look beautiful on you!"

"Yeah, a-about that..." Alexa looked over at Keith, almost staring at her in awe, and smirked towards him. "You put them in my bag behind my back, didn't you?" Keith scoffed as he matched Alexa's smirk.

"It was an opportune moment, Alexa!" Mildly surprised, Hayden and Lily looked over at Keith. Keenan, however, walked over to Alexa, who crouched down to his level to allow him to get a better look at her hair clips.

"You gave them to her?" Hayden asked.

"Yeah...actually, I bought them for her yesterday, but I only slipped the box into her pack this morning," Keith said nervously.

"Where did you get them from?" Lily asked curiously as she watched Alexa walking over to the pond; when Alexa saw her reflection, she seemed to smile with a little more delight as she saw for herself how her clips looked on her.

"Driftveil Market," Keith answered earnestly. All of a sudden, Keith felt Alexa clinging to him from behind.

"Aw, Keith, they're wonderful! Thank you!"

"Glad you like them so much. The stall owner didn't have anything Flabébé related, but-"

"No, it's okay; I love these," Alexa said graciously. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Hayden and Lily couldn't help but smile at the healthy – and heart-warming – interaction between the teens.

"Hey, Alex?"

"Hm?" Alexa looked down at Keenan curiously; he seemed to carry his usual sunny smile, making her even more curious.

"Keith wants to get Ava trained up."

"Makes sense," Alexa said as she released her grip on Keith. Ava hopped onto Keith's shoulder and watched Alexa with interest. "I mean, Reese was trained by Ryder and let's not forget Troy's contribution to Robbie's...it only makes sense for Ava to get a bit of training done, too."

"Does the Ranger Union allow Partner Pokémon to be able to battle?" Lily wondered.

"It should at the very least, all things considered," Hayden said sternly. "I don't think anyone needs to be reminded of a certain...uh...Trainer we all met in Almia."

"Oh, right...him," Keith said nastily. He took a quick breath to calm himself down before looking at Alexa with slight anxiety. "A-Anyway, I was wondering if you'd help me train up Ava; I really wouldn't know where to start..."

"If Troy gave Robbie and Reese some battle training, why don't you consider asking him to train Ava as well?" Lily proposed.

"Or is it that you want the extra time with Lexie?" Hayden asked teasingly. Keith recoiled slightly as he blushed a little.

"Kind of..." Alexa giggled at Keith's shyness.

"Well, I do have Kayla with me," she said as she searched her pack for the Poké Ball that, once opened, released her Luxray. Keith, Reese and Robbie watched as Kayla walked in front of Keith and looked at the Pichu on his shoulder; Ava quivered as she slightly hid behind Keith's neck, intimidated by the Luxray's appearance. "I would have Chutney instead, but he's still in need of rest after yesterday's bout of...uh...just yesterday... But Kayla's just as good of a candidate! Not to mention Jollie; she still wants to evolve, so maybe contributing to Ava's training might help her out as well!" Keith looked at Alexa with a hopeful smile.

"So, is that a yes?"

"In spades," Alexa nodded cheerfully. "Let me have your Xtransceiver number; we can talk tomorrow to reiterate our plans before we meet up!"

"Great!" Keith watched as Alexa held her Xtransceiver near Keith's to allow an infared communication between the two devices. "Where should we meet up anyway?"

"What about Entree Forest?" Keenan suggested.

"Interesting choice," Hayden commented. "There aren't any wild Pokémon in Entree Forest; there's just a little pool of water surrounding Unova's oldest tree."

"If nothing else, that tree would be a good recess point," Lily added.

"And, depending on where we are in the forest, we can either head to Nimbasa City or Opelucid City," Alexa continued with a smile. "Good idea, bro!"

"Thanks!" Alexa pulled her Xtransceiver away from Keith's and looked at it.

"Yep, that's our contacts registered."

"Thanks, Alexa. But...when should we meet up?" Keith asked timidly. Though he couldn't quite understand why he was so anxious all of a sudden; the only conclusion he could come to was that he was attempting to arrange another meeting with Alexa in Hayden's presence, and he felt the same anxiety the last time he made such an arrangement in front of him.

"I have no idea...maybe I can call you on the day? It'll give you a chance to get a few supplies for the Pokémon before we actually meet up."

"Yeah, sure, I'm cool with that!" Keith said cheerfully. Alexa nodded before she shifted her attention to Keenan.

"Wanna tag along?"

"Uh..." Uncertain, Keenan turned to Lily, who gave him a nod of approval. He grinned as he looked up at his sister. "Sure, I'd like that a lot!"

"You should; training at the Entree Forest was your idea," Alexa smirked. Her grin softened as she looked back at her father. "What's going on now?"

"The café?" Hayden shrugged as he grinned sheepishly; it was evident that he had absolutely no idea what the family should do for the rest of the day.

"That's as good a plan as any," Lily chuckled.

"Sounds good to me," Alexa agreed as she returned her Luxray to her Poké Ball. As Lily returned Cheryl to her own Poké Ball, Keith somehow found himself feeling more at ease around Alexa's parents. "I wonder what the café has..."

Adelina lay on the royal purple chaise lounge in her living room, looking severely down-trodden. The walls of her lounge were all painted in a pale lilac colour to partly match the royal purple armchairs on either side of the chaise lounge, which was opposite a flat screen television mounted to the wall, hanging above a wall-mounted DVD player shelf. On the wall behind Adelina were numerous Pokémon Contest photographs, each depicting Adelina herself, wearing different dresses, holding a gold trophy in her arm and one Pokémon wearing a ribbon; the Pokémon vary from photo to photo – a couple of them depicted her Delcatty, some showed her Beautifly, her Vileplume was in a few of them and her Gothitelle was in some of them. In one corner of the room was a grand trophy case, housing each of the trophies shown in the photographs, with their corresponding ribbons all fastened to the bottom of them, just above the base. Huey sat on the fluffy violet carpet and looked at Adelina with dismay as she refused to touch the tall glass of mocha latte, even with the whipped cream topping, chocolate dusting and four wafer sticks on top!

"...stupid Hailey..."

"Reow..."

"...stupid Hawkstones...stupid...Alexa...stupid family...!" She sighed as she lay on her back properly and looked up at her plain white ceiling. "Always getting the better of me..."

"R-Reow...?"

"I'm fine," Adelina grumbled. Huey wasn't so sure that she was, especially as she scowled viciously. "But Hailey...Hailey...that fucking bitch..." She pulled out one of the wafers from her latte glass, taking a small amount of the chocolate dusted whipped cream along with it. "She always gets the better of us...! No matter what we do, that slut always knocks us down...she always finds some way to break us...!" Adelina crushed the wafer stick as she squeezed it in her hand; the plain half fell near the back of the chaise lounge, but Huey caught the creamy end of the wafer in his mouth before it could fall onto the carpet – he seemed to enjoy his accidental treat as he ingested it. "I'll show her...!"

"Reow?"

"And that Alexa...fuck...I wanted to drop that little bombshell of hers!" she complained. "I was looking forward to demolishing what little sense of self-esteem she had left, but she had to ruin it! That fucking bimbo!" Adelina groaned loudly as she placed her free hand on her forehead. "But what else can I do?"

"Row?" Huey was confused.

"I think I'm done; I've pretty much attacked everyone – Alexa, Peggy, the twins-" Suddenly, Adelina sat up and fell completely silent. Huey was even more confused until Adelina began to smile evilly. "...I missed one..."

"Reow?" Adelina looked down at her slightly intimidated Delcatty.

"I missed one! Don't you see?! We can still break the family apart!" To Huey's surprise, Adelina literally squealed with child-like delight, her legs even flailing rather wildly as she squeed. "This is so completely and utterly perfect I can't even BEGIN to tell you!"

"Reow!" Huey rejoiced as Adelina stood up from her chaise lounge, but was more euphoric when he saw Adelina finally taking a sip of her cherished beverage; however, he almost laughed when Adelina was left with a whipped cream moustache.

"Silvia can resume her duties in the morning. In the meantime, let us take our cake and eat it in celebration!"

"Reow!" Huey jumped up and down with glee as he followed Adelina out of the lounge.

"You'd better watch out...there's a storm coming," Adelina smirked sinisterly.

 _To be continued..._


	50. Chapter 50

**Chapter Forty Nine – Morning Freshness**

Alexa pushed open one of Castelite's many windows and leaned her head outside, resting her palms on the window sill beneath her, as she breathed in the fresh and crispy morning air and felt the very slight breeze blowing against her face. She opened her eyes as she breathed out and looked across at the horizon in front of her; the sky was crystal clear and the shining sun looked as warm as it felt. She kept the window open as she ventured away from the window sill and further into the hotel room, still carrying the joyous smile on her face. Hayden and Lily sat on the sofa, reading the morning's newspaper and a novel respectively, while Keenan sorted his belt bag and its contents using the coffee table in front of his parents for support. Iara couldn't help but watch Alexa as she cheerfully entered her bedroom, only to return seconds later with her Safari Ball backpack; Hayden looked up at Alexa as she crouched on the floor just near Keenan and sorted the contents of both her backpack and her belt bag – she seemed to be shifting her items from her belt bag to her backpack. Hayden couldn't help but laugh at how sunny she was, as he heard her humming a little tune to herself.

"You're in an awfully good mood this morning, Lexie."

"And with good reason," Alexa grinned as she briefly looked inside her koban wallet to check how much cash she had inside; her eyes widened very slightly as she realised she still hardly spent the grand she received for the coin she found in Undella Bay's Abyssal Ruins. Nevertheless, she shrugged it off and placed the wallet in the pocket of her denim shorts. "Xavier's well on his way to a full recovery, everybody's picking themselves up after Adelina's onslaught – and don't get me started on yesterday's outing," she added with a laugh as she touched the Gracidea flower clip on the right hand side of her head; it was merely clipped in place as a decoration, as her bangs hung freely on either side of her head. "What's not to be happy about?"

"It's good to see you as optimistic as you are, honey," Lily said kindly, ironically keeping her eyes glued to her novel.

"Thanks," Alexa said as her smile gradually weakened. "I, uh..." Keenan looked down at her with concern.

"Alex..."

"I still feel bad about it, okay? I know I told you about Sinnoh because Adelina threatened to do so herself – what little she knew about it, at least – but that doesn't mean I should have kept it from you for as long as I did...I'm sorry..." Hayden lowered his paper as he looked solemnly at Alexa.

"Don't dwell on it."

"Hm?" Alexa looked up at him curiously.

"What's done is done; if you continue to dwell on it, it'll continue to eat away at you like it has been for the last three years."

"But-"

"He's right, Alexa," Lily said as she finally shifted her focus on her daughter. "And maybe now that you've opened up to us about the whole thing, you can start to lay it all to rest and move on properly." Alexa, starting to feel cheerful again, smiled gently at her supportive parents.

"And you know you can talk to us about anything that's bothering you, Sinnoh included," Hayden added kindly. "By the way, when are you two heading off to Entree Forest?"

"Well-" All of a sudden, Alexa's Xtransceiver began to ring with an uplifting xylophone jingle. She raised her arm to look at the incoming call, only to huff with a tiny smirk as she saw that Keith was calling her. She accepted the communication and Keith's sunny grin appeared on the centre screen seconds later. "I thought I was supposed to call you as we agreed," she said teasingly. Hayden and Lily chuckled to themselves; they knew exactly who she was talking to.

"I couldn't help it, I'm just really excited about this," Keith said eagerly.

"Just don't tell me you didn't sleep a wink last night," Alexa sniggered.

"I did, but I woke up at six in the morning," Keith said excitedly. "I know we agreed to meet at the Entree Forest, but I don't know where in the forest to meet you." Keenan joined in the conversation, looking at his sister's Xtransceiver from over her shoulder.

"Remember that tree Dad mentioned? We could meet there."

"In the very middle of the forest?"

"Yeah, that's the place," Alexa smiled. "Good idea, Keenan," she praised as she briefly glanced up at him. Keenan beamed. "You okay with that?"

"Sounds ideal; it's as good a place as any and Robbie can get a drink afterwards," Keith said happily. "What time?" Keenan quickly looked at his Xtransceiver for the time.

"It's twenty past eight at the moment."

"And it shouldn't take Robbie more than half an hour to get to the middle of Entree Forest if he gallops, so it should be about nine o'clock by the time we meet up if we leave after we hang up," Alexa mused. "Sound good to you, Keith?"

"Sure, I'm down with that," Keith nodded. "I'll see you then!" With that, Keith cut off his communication. Keenan chuckled as Alexa hung up her end of the call.

"Not too keen, then?"

"Hey, I know how he feels; I was excited about today I was barely able to get to sleep last night!" Alexa laughed as she finished her packing; with all of her desired items in her backpack, she began to place her five Poké Balls on her pink Poké Ball belt; four of her five Poké Balls were encased in Seal capsules and had a seal on top of them – Ryder's Poké Ball had a seal that looked like a rainbow star on top, Jollie's Poké Ball had a pink heart-shaped seal on it, Layla's had a seal that resembled a yellow petal and Kayla's had a yellow lightning bolt seal on it. With all of her Poké Balls secured to her belt, Alexa fastened it around her waist and stood up properly, shifting her now closed backpack onto her back. "Ready?"

"Yep!"

"Poreon!"

"Let's go, then!" Alexa and Keenan began to make their way out of the hotel room.

"See you later!" Alexa and Keenan said harmoniously to their relatively amused parents before leaving the room completely.

"It really is nice to see them looking so chipper," Lily said with delight.

"Not sure why Keith was, though," Hayden said as he carelessly closed his newspaper. "Not sure if it's the idea of training Ava or spending time with Lexie."

"Well, I like to think it's the latter, if only because of how she reacted when she saw how her clips looked on her," Lily said blissfully. Hayden smiled warmly as he shuffled closer to her, carefully wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

"Me too; I think yesterday was a great day for her – she was definitely happier than she's ever been since we got here." Lily smiled, almost slyly, at Hayden.

"Same to you, Tiger." Hayden chuckled.

"Anyway...what do you want to do while the kids are out?" he asked with interest. Lily leaned closer to Hayden and rested her head on his shoulder, smiling lovingly.

"Whatever you want to do; I don't mind."

"That reminds me, I still need to send Phoenix back to Samphire Island for a proper rest," Alexa said quickly as she and Keenan exited the hotel building, moving to one side of the doors to allow other people to venture in and out without obstructing their paths. "I can use that opportunity to get another Pokémon or two to take his place. ...maybe Pteros..."

"What are you going to do about Xavier?" Keenan asked with slight worry.

"Urgh, I still need to get a new Poké Ball for him...!" Alexa groaned as she slapped her hand on her forehead. "Why do I keep forgetting that...?"

"Are you okay?" Alexa smiled kindly at Keenan as Zane, with Troy sitting on his back, landed in front of them, despite neither Keenan nor Alexa noticing his arrival.

"Not a headache to be felt, don't worry," she said reassuringly.

"Good to know," Troy said as he walked over to Alexa. She and Keenan, despite caught off guard by his spontaneous visit, smiled happily at their eldest cousin.

"Hey, Troy! What brings you here?"

"Zane saw you leaving the hotel, so I thought we'd stop and say hi along the way," Troy explained with a weakened smile. Alexa nodded solemnly.

"You're taking Perri and Michael to see Xavier." Troy chuckled as he nodded.

"Astute as ever; nobody can say your head's a mess at this point. Anyway, I was thinking...if you're not doing anything else, Lex, we could visit him together?" Alexa raised an intrigued eyebrow.

"But we're already planning to meet Keith in the middle of Entree Forest," Keenan said in careful protest. "We're hoping to train up Ava a little bit."

"Oh, he finally asked you for help with that, huh?" Troy asked cheekily.

"Y-Yeah, yesterday," Alexa said nervously. "But I really should visit Xavier..."

"You can do it later if you want to," Troy said generously.

"I could, but I'd rather Phoenix visit Xavier once more before I call Grandpa and-"

"I don't think you'd be getting hold of Grandpa," Troy said shyly. Keenan huffed a small laugh.

"He's holding the Daycare Centre for you, isn't he?"

"Yeah...now I owe him one," Troy laughed feebly. "But don't worry about it; he left Skywing and Merton in charge!"

"That's all well and good, but-"

"Go ahead and see Xavier," Keenan said cheerfully. Alexa looked down at him in confusion. "We have all day to get Ava's training started! I'll make your excuses to Keith if he's already at the Entree Forest pond." Alexa crouched and pulled Keenan into a gentle hug, which he was more than happy to return.

"Aw, thanks, Keenan! I'll try not to take too long, okay?"

"I'll call if anything comes up," Keenan said quietly as he and Alexa released their embrace. Alexa turned her attention to Troy.

"Okay, I'm ready for my detour."

"Archeops Express is raring to go," Troy said teasingly as he offered his hand to Alexa.

"ARRRRR!" Zane roared merrily as Troy helped Alexa climb onto his back. As Troy himself mounted on Zane's back, sitting in front of Alexa, Keenan took a Poké Ball, released his Rapidash from it and quickly mounted onto her back; Iara almost slid down Keenan's torso to sit comfortably in front of him.

"Like I said, I'll try not to be too long," Alexa said to Keenan. "But can you apologise to Keith for this if he's there like he might be?"

"I think he'd understand your decision to visit a hospitalised Pokémon, Alex," Keenan laughed. "But, yeah, leave it to me and I'll meet you at the forest."

"Thanks, Keenan," Alexa said appreciatively. "I'll send your best wishes to Xavier."

"Sure!"

"All right, then! Zane, let's go!"

"ARRRRRR!"

"C'mon, Darcy, to Entree Forest!" Darcy neighed excitedly as she began to gallop gracefully towards the city's northern exit. At the exact same time, Zane soared into the sky; Alexa wrapped her arms around Troy's torso to prevent herself from slipping off of the Archeops' back. After the two Pokémon departed from the hotel, a Beautifly slowly flew out of the tree directly opposite the building and flew out of the city in the opposite direction, seemingly sniggering to itself.

Hailey walked along Route 3 with a smile as bright as the sun shining above her, with Peggy, Daphne and Daniel walking slightly in front of her. Both Daniel and Daphne were attired in their Academy uniforms, which seemed to put a sunny smile on Daphne's face, while Peggy sat on Piper's back as she walked next to Daphne, humming a gentle melody to herself.

"I'm really glad your suspension's over now," Daphne said joyfully. "It feels weird for it to end before the weekend, but-"

"No, it's fine," Daniel said indifferently. "If nothing else, the work I'll need to catch up on will allow my mind to wander away from recent happenings."

"Every cloud has a silver lining, huh?" Peggy, however, suddenly scowled.

"I dunno..." The twins looked at the young child in confusion. Hailey, meanwhile, was looking around the beautiful scenery around her as she walked; she was almost in too good of a mood.

"What do you mean, Pegs?" Daphne wondered.

"They've got that nasty pizza bread thing for lunch today," Peggy answered. Daniel groaned with mild revulsion.

"The pizza baguettes...I thought we'd seen the last of those vile abominations..."

"You'd think they'd be removed from the cafeteria menu after Roscoe caught food poisoning from one months ago," Daphne said in bafflement.

"Personally, they should have been removed after their first day," Daniel said crabbily as he pushed his glasses further up his face. "The baguette bases were horribly soggy."

"I had a crunchy one once," Daphne said quickly as the group started to approach the Daycare Centre. "I think it was overcooked..." Hailey spontaneously looked into the Daycare paddock and suddenly stopped in her tracks; the man she saw checking over the newborn Piplup and Glameow in the company of their Purugly mother was most definitely not Troy like she was originally expecting.

"Dad?!" Piper and the twins stopped and looked back at Hailey as Ian stood up and turned to face her. While Piper, Daniel and Daphne walked back to Hailey in bewilderment, Ian laughed as he walked over to the fence. Peggy, however, smiled with sheer delight as Ian drew closer.

"Grandpa!"

"Hey, pumpkin, it's good to see you again," Ian said nicely as he petted Peggy's head. Noticing Piper's new form, Ian gave her a gentle petting of her own. "Congratulations on evolving, Piper."

"Ti-ruuuuuh!" Piper cooed happily.

"What are you doing here, Grandpa?" Daniel asked curiously.

"That's what I wanna know," Hailey added, still baffled by his presence.

"Troy asked me to cover for him while he's taking Perri and Michael to see Xavier in Mistralton," Ian explained calmly.

"How did you-"

"Alexa filled me in," Ian said seriously as he looked towards Hailey. To even Daniel's surprise, Ian started to show his concern. "Are you all right, Hailey? Alexa mentioned how you've been having problems with Adelina."

"I'm all right, Dad," Hailey said kindly. "Right now, I have much more important things on my mind than her!"

"She's re-entering the Nimbasa Contest!" Daphne said gleefully. Ian smiled at Daphne.

"Is that right?"

"And it's Brie's turn to kick up a storm!" Hailey said enthusiastically. "What's more, I'm considering buying a new dress for my comeback!" Ian returned his attention to Hailey.

"What would you do with the one you wore last time?" he asked, smiling with amusement.

"I already donated it to charity; in hindsight, I didn't like how part of the skirt looked longer than the rest of it," Hailey said sheepishly.

"At any rate, it sounds like a good idea to me," Ian nodded. "Maybe you could do something new with your hair as well."

"Aw, but I like how Mum splits one ponytail into two!" Daphne playfully pouted.

"I still don't know how she does that," Daniel said quietly to himself.

"It IS a bit of a hassle, I have to admit," Hailey said aloud as she felt the unusual ponytail at the top of her head. "Thanks for the idea, Dad, I'll definitely look into that; maybe I can get a coloured highlight or something – blue, maybe?" Ian laughed.

"Whatever you feel like, honey." He looked down at Peggy. "What have you been doing with Piper while you're at school?"

"I leave her here with Troy and he trains her with Zane," Peggy answered. "But they're not here, so..."

"Leave her with me; I'm sure AJ can do something for her."

"Are you sure, Dad?" Hailey asked reluctantly. "I mean, you've already got your hands full with the Daycare, so-"

"Everything's under control, Hailey, don't worry about a thing," Ian winked. "If I couldn't handle it, I wouldn't have offered."

"He's got a point, Mum," Daniel said in agreement.

"If you say so," Hailey sniggered.

"Thank you so much, Grandpa!" Peggy said gratefully.

"Ti-ruuuh, ti-ruuuuuuh!" Piper flapped her cotton-y wings excitedly.

Robbie galloped through the luscious forest with Keith sitting on his back and Reese sitting on his head with Ava, both holding onto his antlers to keep themselves from falling off of him. Keith, Ava and Reese looked around at the scenery around them, almost breath-taken by the tranquillity of what they were seeing; beams of sunlight penetrated the small gaps in the tree canopy overhead, giving the grass they landed on the illusion that they were glowing. Eventually, Robbie saw the clearing ahead of him, with nothing but a very large oak tree in the middle of a pool of water – the very middle of the forest. As soon as Robbie made his way onto the clearing from the forest path, Darcy galloped into the clearing from the path opposite him, prompting the two equines to gradually slow down and meet up with one another in front of the tree. Keith and Keenan noticed their timing and laughed.

"Glad you made it when you did," Keenan chuckled.

"Maybe we should ride together sometime," Keith proposed, partly teasingly as he and Keenan dismounted their steeds.

"I'd like that," Keenan said happily as he looked at his Xtransceiver. "Ten to nine...we're still kind of early," he said quietly as Iara jumped from Darcy's back to Keenan's shoulder, allowing the Rapidash to take a drink from the pond with Robbie after Keith helped Reese and Ava off of his head.

"I couldn't help it, I just got excited. That and I think Robbie was faster than usual because of how sunny it is; y'know, because his ability's Chlorophyll," Keith presumed as he placed Reese and Ava on the grass. Reese tapped Ava's shoulder and invited her to play with him for a little while, to which Ava accepted and began to playfully chase the Buizel around the clearing, both Pokémon running on all fours. "Where's Alexa?"

"She went to visit Xavier with Troy; he stopped by and invited her to join him," Keenan explained. "She said she apologises, but I'm still not entirely sure if she should for visiting Xavier."

"It's okay, I understand," Keith nodded acceptingly. Keenan sighed with relief.

"I knew you would. Thanks."

"Don't sweat it," Keith said casually as he slipped his red and black rucksack off of his back and raided its main compartment. Keenan watched curiously as Keith pulled out two milkshake bottles, one banana and one strawberry; Keith tossed the strawberry milkshake to Keenan, who barely managed to catch it. "Kinda surprised I got here with time to spare, though, considering I did a bit of supplies shopping before we left Driftveil."

"Thanks, Keith," Keenan said appreciatively as he immediately opened his gifted beverage. Keith looked around the forest clearing as he opened his milkshake bottle.

"I can see why you chose this place; it's beautiful."

"We should have more peace here as well; not many people visit the Entree Forest, which is why it's so well-preserved," Keenan explained as he took a sip from his bottle; he held the bottle lid in front of Iara, allowing her to lick what little milkshake failed to escape it.

"Any reason why this place isn't so frequently visited?" Keith wondered. "I mean, I saw a map of the region and it looks like this place takes up the majority of the entire region!"

"It does, but I don't know why Entree Forest isn't as popular as White Forest...it's hardly even mentioned in the history books," Keenan said quietly as he, too, looked around the forest. "I guess it's because not many people know that this is a forest they can access whenever they like."

"Well, it looks like a great place to train Ava, so I don't have a problem with how obscure it is," Keith smiled as he drank his milkshake. Keenan looked at Keith awkwardly, as if he was nervous about what he was about to say next.

"...thank you, Keith." Keith glanced at the shy boy in confusion.

"What for?"

"For looking after my sister after my Dad's outburst." Keith was alarmed at first to hear such a thing from Keenan all of a sudden, but a warm and loving smile made its way onto his face as he remembered that evening in question; he recalled feeling safe and secure in Alexa's arms as she soothed his sorrows, as he had done for her several times prior – the more he thought about her gentle touch, the more relaxed he felt. "She's really lucky to have you."

"The feeling's mutual," Keith said sincerely. "But...I think she looked after me that night." Keenan blinked; he was suddenly curious.

Xavier lay on his hospital bed with a mirror standing next to his bedside. He looked at it with pleasure as a magenta wave of energy swiftly ran from his head to his feet, changing his form from his normal Zoroark self to that of his human guise, though his head retained its bandages. Xavier smirked as another wave of magenta energy ran from his forehead to the back of his head, making his black and red hair miraculously appear on his head. Pleased with himself, Xavier then proceeded to jump forms; first he made himself appear as Troy, then as Professor Hastings, then as his Ninetales father...he even transformed into Adelina for a fleeting moment.

"I don't think so, darling," Xavier said snobbishly to himself, purposely imitating Adelina's voice very poorly. He chuckled to himself in his normal voice as he shifted his form to Alexa's.

"ZORRR!" Before Xavier could switch forms again, Perri and Michael practically burst into the room and almost literally flung themselves into a hug with their hospitalised son. Xavier, retaining Alexa's form, wrapped his arm around both of his parents.

"Hey, Mum, hey, Dad! It's really great to see you!" Xavier said happily, perfectly replicating Alexa's voice just as Troy and the real Alexa made their way into the room, Ryder walking alongside Alexa with Jollie in his arms. Ryder, seeing the form Xavier was in, laughed.

"Hey, Alex, I didn't know you had a twin!" he joked. Jollie sniggered as Xavier quickly resumed his normal Zoroark form.

"I don't," Alexa sniggered.

"My, I'm popular this morning," Xavier teased. "I can feel the love!" he playfully exclaimed as he slightly tightened his grip on his parents, fully embracing their hugs.

"You ARE loved, silly," Troy laughed. Perri and Michael finally released their son from their cuddle as he looked over at Alexa with a kind smile.

"So, how's it going?"

 _To be continued..._


	51. Chapter 51

**Chapter Fifty – Hurricane Adelina pt I**

"Considering that my arm was kind of twisted to see you this morning, things are pretty great," Alexa smiled as she released Phoenix, Kayla and Layla from their Poké Balls, Kayla appearing from a yellow lightning bolt and Layla appearing from a burst of yellow flower petals. Troy smiled at the displays.

"Twisted?" Xavier questioned in a snicker.

"Keenan and Troy talked me into it," Alexa smirked as she glanced over at Troy, who sat on the bed next to Xavier with Michael just in front of him.

"You didn't have to accept my invite, y'know," Troy laughed. Perri dotingly stroked her son's bandaged head gently, touched to see him wide awake, talking slightly faster than before and joking around – she was happy to see him starting to return to his normal self again.

"By the way, about that clip on your head," Xavier began with a slightly kinder smile on his face. "Was it from Keith after all?"

"What?" Confused, Troy looked at Alexa again; somehow, the Gracidea hair clip was more noticeable to him. "I thought you bought that!"

"Nope, she found it – and a sister clip – in her pack yesterday when she tried to give me some water," Xavier explained.

"And, yes, they were a gift from Keith," Alexa confirmed bashfully. "He practically admitted it when he said it was an opportune moment – slipping it into my pack while I was changing back into my clothes..."

"So you ended up spending the night with him after all?" Troy asked with a smile that grew after Alexa nodded in response. "Sounds to me like neither of you have anything to resolve anymore." Xavier sat up and looked at Troy with euphoria; if he had a tail as a part of his anatomy, it would be wagging wildly.

"That's what I said yesterday!"

"Great minds think alike," Troy laughed.

"I'm, uh..." Troy and the present Pokémon faced Alexa curiously; she was smiling rather humbly as she felt herself starting to blush a little. "I'm starting to think you're right...I mean, that night was wonderful, but yesterday was so much fun as well."

"Oh, yeah? What did you do yesterday?" Ryder asked with interest.

"Spent the day at Humilau Water Gardens after getting to know Mum's new Nidoqueen, Roberta." Troy and the Pokémon were surprised.

"She has a new Pokémon? When did that happen?"

"The night Keith and I slept together; Dad told me that story – it's how he hurt his back."

"Aaaaaah... Well, it's great to know things are improving for ya, Lex."

"Thanks, Troy," Alexa said sweetly. "That means a lot."

"So...what are you up to today?" Xavier wondered.

"Keenan and I were going to meet Keith in Entree Forest to give Ava some training," Alexa explained, looking over at her indifferent Luxray. "She's a Pichu, so I thought it'd be a decent idea for her mentor to be an Electric type."

"Lux-Luxray?"

"Chutney's resting after he got hurt a couple days ago; that's why he can't do it. Think you can handle it in his place?" Kayla smiled gently.

"Luxray," she nodded confidently.

"Thanks, girl."

"Better get going then," Xavier said seriously. Confused, Alexa, Troy and the Pokémon faced him in confusion.

"Xavier?"

"Sounds like Adelina's been keeping a low profile since you brought me here," Xavier continued. "But I don't trust her to stay on her proverbial Naughty Step for much longer."

"I dunno..." Alexa started to look as conflicted as she felt. "I know that I haven't seen her for a couple of days now, but...I don't feel right leaving you so suddenly on a count of her."

"Don't make a big deal out of it," Xavier smiled comfortingly. "I have my Mom and Dad with me; I'm in wonderful paws and claws."

"Zorr-orr," Perri said lovingly as she stroked Xavier's cheek.

"I'll be fine. Really." Alexa sighed, but soon smiled warmly.

"Okay." She took a Poké Ball from her magenta Poké Ball belt. "I just need to change my roster first. Phoenix, I'm sending you back to Samphire Island for a proper rest if that's okay with you."

"Rhrrgh," Phoenix nodded as he smiled, almost in relief. Alexa chuckled.

"I know; you're still aching from that battle with Adelina." Phoenix nodded again. "Don't worry, you can get some rest on the island, implying that Lionel isn't acting up again," Alexa continued as she returned her wounded Charizard back to his Poké Ball. Jollie rolled her eyes in frustration at the thought of Lionel misbehaving once more.

"Luxray, Lux-Luxray."

"Yeah, Skywing would have contacted me by now if he was," Alexa laughed sheepishly. "Anyway, I'll be right back; I'm just going to get in touch with Grandpa and have Phoenix swapped for Pteros and Millie."

"AND Millie?" Ryder asked curiously.

"Why not?" Alexa shrugged. "And, Xavier, I promise I'll have a new Poké Ball for you by the time I see you again."

"Hey, there's no hurry," Xavier said casually. "I'm not cleared to be discharged yet, whatever that means."

"The nurses want to keep you here to make sure there's nothing else wrong with you," Troy explained.

"Ah. So, yeah; no rush."

"I'll be right back," Alexa said as she left the room. As she closed the door behind her, her Xtransceiver suddenly began to ring with a cheerful melody resembling that of a music box; she held up her wrist and saw that Keenan was calling her. To her bafflement, she accepted the call as she commenced her search for the Pokémon Centre video phones; Keenan's smiling face appeared on the centre screen. "Everything okay?"

"Yeah, it's all good," Keenan nodded. He stood near the pond and occasionally glanced over at Keith, who sat near the edge of the pond as he fed a bottle of MooMoo milk to Ava, making sure she didn't choke on it. Darcy and Robbie lay nearby, almost falling asleep under the sun's warming rays, but Reese was chasing Iara around playfully. "Keith and I were wondering if it'd be a good idea to eat out for lunch. Considering that, y'know, we didn't think about how long we'd be out here an' all..."

"Good point. I don't have any objections to that," Alexa smiled. "I can get Xavier a new Poké Ball while we're out."

"How's he doing anyway?" Keith asked loudly, loud enough for Alexa to hear.

"He's not cleared for discharge yet, but he's talking a lot more normally now, so he seems to be doing okay," Alexa smiled happily. "Especially with his parents' company." Keith smiled at Alexa's response.

"That's great! What are you up to now?" Keenan asked as he noticed Alexa sitting down.

"I'm getting in touch with Grandpa to see if he'll take Phoenix back for a rest and send over Pteros and Millie over," Alexa replied. "Phoenix can't fly me to Entree Forest, so I need someone who can."

"Why not have Lupin or Shandra Teleport you here?" Keenan wondered.

"Because they haven't been to-" Suddenly, Alexa spotted a black and pale grey speck zooming towards Keenan, its winged body engulfed in streaks of white light. "BEHIND YOU!"

"Huh?!" Keith and Keenan looked at the attacking Beautifly in confusion that swiftly turned to terror. Keenan held his arms in front of his face to defend himself, unintentionally allowing Alexa to get a perfect view of the attacking Beautifly just before it crashed its head into Keenan's Xtransceiver; the force of the impact pushed Keenan to the ground and cracked the centre screen of the Xtransceiver, abruptly ending his call to Alexa. Beautifly hovered in place, giddy from the head-on collision, allowing Keith ample time to help Keenan off of the grass after putting Ava down safely. She, Darcy, Robbie, Reese and Iara watched with perplexity as Keenan brushed himself off.

"You all right?!"

"I-y-yeah," Keenan said shakily. He looked at his damaged Xtransceiver and sighed in frustration. "Damn..."

"Can you get a new one?" Keith asked worriedly.

"Yeah, but repairs are free. I just hope this one can be repaired..." Angry, Keenan glared at the giddy Beautifly. "What was that for?!" Beautifly quickly shook its head to snap it out of its fatigued state and scowled at the youth.

"BEAUUUTIFLY!"

"What did we do to you?!" Keenan asked demandingly.

"BEAUUU!" Beautifly zoomed towards Keenan again, but Keith ran over to him and leapt out of Beautifly's way with him. The boys landed on the grass on their shoulders, but recovered and stood up very quickly.

"She's not listening," Keenan groaned. "Iara, we need you!"

"Por!" Iara nodded as she glared furiously at the Beautifly. She opened her mouth and released a bolt of cyan blue energy that froze small particles of air around it as it zoomed towards Beautifly. Reese replicated Iara's Ice Beam attack, which also struck the Beautifly before she could react. However, much to everyone's astonishment, Beautifly hardly felt a thing and zoomed straight into both Reese and Iara with a swift and hard Aerial Ace attack. Reese and Iara managed to dodge, but Beautifly still struck Iara's tail, causing the little Vaporeon to yelp in agony.

"Iara!"

"Why didn't Beautifly feel that!?" Keith complained. Keenan turned to the bewildered Rapidash.

"Darcy, try a Flare Blitz!" he instructed. Darcy smirked as she immediately stood up.

"Robbie, do what you can to that thing!" Keith said quickly, keeping an eye on Reese as he attempted to attack Beautifly with a stream of steaming hot water; Iara copied Reese's attack, but the Beautifly expertly evaded both attacks.

"Saws!" Robbie nodded compliantly. He opened his mouth, causing a deep purple and black energy to spiral in front of his snout. At the same time, Darcy braced herself as her fiery mane, tail and fetlocks intensified, covering her completely in her own flames. Both Darcy's Flare Blitz attack and Robbie's Shadow Ball attack were about to initiate when something jumped out of the pond and fired a blast of water that was so large and so forceful that it not only struck both Darcy and Robbie, but it sent them flying towards the farthest side of the clearing! Keith and Keenan watched in horror as the two equine Pokémon skidded on the grass as the attack waned, leaving the pair of them soaked to the bone; Darcy's flames were reduced to mere embers and was very barely conscious.

"D-Darcy!" Not knowing what else to do, Keenan quickly returned Darcy to the safety of her Poké Ball. Keith, however, began to rush over to his Sawsbuck, who was struggling to stand back onto his feet. Reese and Iara hurried over towards Keith and Keenan.

"Robbie! Are you-"

"AAAGH!" All of a sudden, whatever jumped out of the pond to attack Robbie and Darcy leapt at Keenan and restrained him; a pink tentacle held both of his arms behind his back, another clenched his throat ever so slightly and three smaller tentacles held his legs together – the attacker and alleged abductor was a Jellicent. Hearing Keenan's cry, Keith, Robbie, Reese, Iara and Ava looked over at him in terror, especially as they saw the situation he was suddenly in.

"KEENAN!"

"POREON!" Iara was particularly distressed to see him in jeopardy. Before anyone could hurry to Keenan's aid, they all heard sinister chuckling as Adelina, wearing a tight and revealing black midi dress with decorative slits at the top of the forearms, at the elbows and above the chest area, revealing her cleavage and a pair of black leather high-heeled platform shoes. Keith seethed with intense rage as he spotted the smug Delcatty walking alongside her, wearing a black leather shoulder bag. Iara and Ava were intimidated by Adelina's arrival, but Reese and Robbie were more determined to help Keenan out of his predicament.

"Hello, Keith. Good to see you again, sweetheart."

Lily sat on the sofa with her eyes fixated on her novel while Hayden paced around the room slightly as he held his mobile phone to his ear.

"All right, yep, that's fine," he nodded. "All right, I'll talk to you soon," he said courteously as he hung up the phone. He sighed as he carelessly tossed his phone onto the coffee table. "Gulliver."

"Leaving you hanging?" Lily asked.

"Kind of; he called to tell me he's still considering his decision," he said crankily as he sat next to his wife. "I'm not sure if he's doing this to try and keep me on edge or if he's paranoid that I might think he's rejected my proposal if I don't hear from him for two days."

"Probably the latter," Lily said as she looked over at her disgruntled husband. "Try not to worry about it-"

"I'm not worried about it; I just can't get my head around this guy's mindset!" Hayden complained. "At the coffee shop, he had a large coffee, a flapjack, a muffin AND a piece of carrot cake! All in one sitting!"

"Was he stressed?" Lily asked with concern.

"A little self-righteous, perhaps, but I wouldn't say stressed," Hayden said with a raised eyebrow. "All I had was a decaff coffee and some poffins for Tidus, so sitting with a glutton felt awkward to me."

"Maybe he felt awkward around a sensible eater," Lily retorted playfully.

"Ha, touché," Hayden smirked. "Anyway-" Suddenly, Hayden's Xtransceiver emitted an upbeat pop tune as it picked up an incoming call. Hayden and Lily saw that Alexa was calling them as Hayden accepted it; to his and Lily's confusion, Alexa was incredibly livid.

"Dad, it's Adelina!" Hayden and Lily were perplexed at Alexa's bluntness.

"What's Adelina?" Lily asked.

"She's attacking Keenan and Keith, that's what's Adelina!" Alexa replied in a slight yell. "The Beautifly I saw attacking Keenan was hers; I've seen her before – the day Xavier got hurt!"

"Are you serious?!" Hayden asked in horror.

"Why would I make something like this up about my brother?!" Alexa asked furiously. "I need to go down there and help him!"

"Absolutely not!" Hayden firmly said in a heartbeat. "I am not letting you go through all of that again!"

"Go through what again?" asked a faint and very refined voice over the Xtransceiver. Alexa looked up from the Xtransceiver and looked ahead of her, carrying her scowl.

"I'll explain later, Skywing, have you found Pteros and Millie yet?!"

"Y-Yes, they're on their way as we speak," Skywing confirmed nervously.

"What did I just say?!" Hayden fumed.

"Hayden-"

"Alexa, you are not going to face Adelina again, not after what she did – and almost did – to Xavier, do you hear me?!"

"Loud and clear, but, if I don't, the same could happen to one of Keenan's Pokémon or to one of Keith's Pokémon – like Ava!" Hayden and Lily faced one another with a look of trepidation about them; Ava was still a baby Pokémon, making the thought of her suffering from Xavier's injury disturbed the parents greatly – especially as they came to the conclusion that Ava wouldn't even survive the injury. Hayden sighed submissively, confusing Lily; Alexa, however, used Hayden's silence as a chance to collect her two Poké Balls. "Thanks, Skywing."

"Lily, call Hailey and Harvey about this."

"R-Right," Lily complied as she immediately vacated the sofa to carry out Hayden's instruction, heading into her hotel bedroom to make the call in privacy.

"Alexa." Alexa returned her attention to her very stern-looking father; their expressions were a perfect match. "Your mother's calling your Aunt Hailey and Uncle Harvey about this. In the meantime, I'll only let you help your brother on one condition; your Pokémon are NOT to attack unless they absolutely have to. Have I made myself clear?" Despite Hayden's seemingly strict condition, Alexa instantly nodded.

"Transparent." Hayden sighed with relief, but he still wore a frown.

"Please be careful, Lexie..."

"Just hurry up; I'm not sure how much time I can buy," Alexa said seriously.

"We'll be as fast as we can," Hayden promised. Feeling very slightly reassured, Alexa nodded.

"Bye, Dad." Before Hayden could say anything else, Alexa hung up her call. Hayden hung up the communication entirely as he headed straight into the bedroom, where Lily was in the middle of conversing with both Harvey and Hailey with her Xtransceiver.

"Is this important, Lily? Brie and I are in the middle of rehearsal!" Hailey's crabby attitude quickly changed as she and Harvey saw Hayden looking at them from over Lily's shoulder, very slightly startling his wife in the process.

"Yes. Yes it is."

"Whoa...why so serious, bro?" Harvey asked with a nervous chuckle.

Alexa stormed into Xavier's recovery room, causing Layla to yelp with surprise as the door slammed open.

"Guys, we're going. Now."

"What's the rush?" Ryder asked.

"Adelina's the rush; she's attacking Keith and Keenan as we speak!" Alexa exclaimed furiously as she returned both Layla and Kayla back to their respective Poké Balls. It seemed that the more Alexa thought about the idea of Adelina ambushing Keenan, the angrier she became.

"Called it," Xavier whispered to himself.

"Are you kidding me?!" Troy asked in horror. Ryder snarled violently at him before Alexa could do the same.

"Why would she make something like this up about Keenan?!" he asked nastily.

"Dad's given me the go-ahead to help him, but I need to buy him, Aunt Hailey and Uncle Harvey time to get to Entree Forest to confront her in my place!" Alexa explained quickly as she took Ryder and Jollie's Poké Balls. "We're not going to battle her again if we can help it, okay?"

"Got it," Ryder nodded.

"Buneary!" Jollie said with determination just before she and Ryder were recalled into their Poké Balls. Placing the two Poké Balls back onto her Poké Ball belt, Alexa sighed with slight relief.

"It's always good to know I have support when I need it."

"Want me to help you?" Troy offered.

"No thanks, Troy, I can handle this," Alexa insisted. "Besides, Keith's there if I need help."

"But I can help you!"

"Against a Jellicent?!" Alexa asked frantically. Troy turned pale as he began to panic.

"J-Jell..."

"I'm sorry, Troy," Alexa said regretfully. "Just...j-just stay here, okay? I've gotta go," she said as she ran out of the room, closing the door quietly behind her. Troy managed to calm himself down, but he couldn't help but feel completely helpless, much to the concern of Perri, Michael and Xavier.

"You certainly look well," Adelina falsely complimented. "Did Alexa like the figurine you bought for her?"

"Don't you dare strike up a casual conversation with me," Keith said savagely. "Or ANY conversation for that matter."

"Oh, my...did we wake up on the wrong side of the bed this morning?" Keith couldn't help but watch as Keenan struggled to breathe with Dolores's grip on his throat.

"Let him go, Adelina; he has nothing to do with whatever beef you have with me! Hell, I didn't DO ANYTHING to you!"

"On the contrary...you're not the one I have the beef with," Adelina said snidely. Keith raised an eyebrow.

"Even so, you'd better let him go right now-"

"Or what, darling?" Adelina asked tauntingly. "You'll run to Mummy?" In the blink of an eye, Keith felt aghast, offended and livid in one torrential blow; he clenched both of his fists tightly, making his knuckles click, as he glared with demonic fury at Keenan's captor. "If I were you, darling, I wouldn't do anything stupid." Adelina shifted her eyes towards Keenan, who was keeping all of his efforts on breathing; Dolores's grip on him was so tight he felt there was no point in even trying to break free. "Just in case someone gets caught in the crossfire and gets a bruise or two."

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't give YOU a bruise or two!" Keith demanded viciously. Despite Iara's protests, Reese and Robbie ran straight towards Adelina, Silvia and Huey, but Adelina quickly took her bag from Huey, allowing him to confront Robbie and slam his head into the Sawsbuck's throat. While Reese was distracted by Robbie's assault, Adelina released her Gothitelle from his Poké Ball.

"For what, darling?" Adelina asked innocently.

"ALEXA!" Keith answered in a furious roar. "You threatened her AND hospitalised her Zoroark! What's worse is your threat to reveal what little you knew about her history with Team Galactic jeopardised her ties with her family! You are NEVER going to be forgiven for that!"

"Quite frankly, poppet, I couldn't care less about what you think," Adelina shrugged. "What I do care about is making sure little Keenan is punished for meddling in affairs that are of no concern to him."

"...h-help..."

"POREON!" Iara shivered in fear as she watched Keenan coming close to suffocating.

"All he did was show his sister a stupid photograph; HOW IS THAT PUNISHABLE?!" Keith asked nastily. Robbie recovered from his assault and tried to buck Huey straight in the face; however, the Delcatty was far too nimble for the Sawsbuck to keep up with, much to his alarm.

"You do realise he and Alexa suspected me all this time, don't you?" Adelina asked with a raised eyebrow. Keith's eyes widened in horror; he did, in fact, recall witnessing a Xtransceiver discussion where it was confirmed that Adelina was lying about something that wasn't explained in his hidden presence. "So...what would you do with a little snoop?" Keith's anger quickly returned to him.

"Don't you fucking DARE!"

"I won't have to, darling," Adelina smirked. With a snap of her fingers, Huey and Francesca smirked. In an instant, Huey rapidly slapped, bit, slashed slammed Robbie in various places all over his body, the Sawsbuck crying out in immense agony with each strike. In the end, everyone heard a very loud crack swiftly followed by Robbie's agonised wail as Huey ended up breaking the Sawsbuck's hind leg, causing him to topple to the ground. However, one quick slap with his tail sent Robbie flying back to approximately where he ended up after Dolores's attack from the pond. Terrified, Keith watched Robbie straining to stand up, only to fail at every endeavor.

"ROBBIE!" Keith and Iara ran over to the wounded Robbie. Reese glared violently at Huey with a tear lingering in his eye, but Ava remained where she stood, visibly shivering with fright. "ROBBIE! A-Are you okay?!" he asked desperately.

"...S-Saw..." Robbie was in too much pain to answer coherently, much to Keith's dismay.

"If you're so intent on getting in my way, I'll have to make you suffer like Alexa did," Adelina said tauntingly. "Francesca, honey, you know exactly what to do."

"Gothitelle," Francesca nodded as she watched Reese rushing over to Huey with an icy fist reared behind him. Francesca held her hands together, almost in prayer, as she began to cackle with yellow static electricity; she held her arms out at Reese, aiming a large lightning bolt at the livid Buizel. However, much to everyone's bafflement, the electricity swerved away from Reese and headed straight at Ava, who not only took the electric attack, but came out completely unscathed after the attack ended. Adelina and Keith were particularly surprised at what had happened, but a child-like grin of delight promptly made its way to Adelina's face. While everything was calm, Reese hurried over to Ava to check on her health.

"Oh, my days! When did you get such a rare Pichu?!" Adelina asked with glee. Keith looked at her in confusion.

"Eh?"

"That was SO Pichu's secret ability!" Adelina squealed joyfully as she immediately searched her bag for a Luxury Ball. "And I am SO going to capture it." Horrified, Keith stood up and confronted her in protest.

"You can't!" he cried. "She-"

"Unless she already has a Poké Ball already, honey, I think you'll find that I can." Keith was mortified; Ava, in fact, didn't have a Poké Ball – he didn't capture her in the one her egg case came with! "Silvia?"

"BEAUU!" Silvia flew straight towards Ava.

"REESE, STOP HER!" Keith cried desperately. Adelina was highly amused as Reese leapt up at Silvia with an icy fist ready to strike her; before the Ice Punch could land, however, Silvia released an orange cloud of dust from her wings, causing Reese to fall to the floor, his movements severely restricted as static electricity danced all over his body occasionally. "REESE!"

"You needn't worry about your Pichu being affected by the Stun Spore," Adelina grinned sinisterly as the spores fell on top of Ava; Ava was confused as to why her movements weren't being restricted as Reeses's had become. "Electric types cannot be paralysed. But that's not my intent."

"Whuh—aagh!" All of a sudden, Keith found himself underneath Silvia's shower of muscle-numbing spores as she flew over him. "Urk...! Aaaagh...!" Keith's twitched violently as he collapsed onto his knees. Adelina laughed as he struggled to fight against the paralysis; Iara and Ava, however, were devastated.

"POREON!" Iara tried to hurry to Keith's aid, but accidentally ran into the last of Silvia's Stun Spore, making her suffer from the same paralysis, leaving Ava completely defenceless.

"PICHU!" Ava cried fearfully.

"It hurts, doesn't it? It would have been so much fun to see Daniel under that very same strain, but I guess you'll have to do," Adelina said meanly.

"...Keith...!" Keenan watched helplessly as Keith constantly succumbed to his paralysis, preventing him from standing up from the grass.

"All right, little Pichu..." Ava looked over at Adelina with dread. "You're MINE!" Adelina cackled as she tossed the Luxury Ball at the frightened Pichu.

"Ava, run...!" Instead of complying with Keith's plea, Ava covered her eyes out of fear. However, the Luxury Ball never touched her; as if by a stroke of luck, a large Aerodactyl landed on the grass just in front of Ava, causing the Luxury Ball to tap the flying Fossil Pokémon's knee and fall to the ground nearby. Startled by the Aerodactyl's appearance, Ava released a little burst of electricity before fleeing straight to Keith, who barely managed to hold onto her with one arm. Keith looked up at the girl on the Aerodactyl's back and smiled with intense relief as he recognised her long golden hair over her Safari Ball backpack. Keenan and Adelina also saw her, but they couldn't see her eyes as her head was lowered.

"...A-Alex...!" Adelina, however, was less than impressed and huffed snobbishly.

"You've got some nerve showing your face to me, young lady...especially after you—" Adelina suddenly silenced herself as Alexa raised her head to face her directly. Keith couldn't see why Alexa raising her head halted Adelina's sentence, but the look of pure hatred and deep anger was so malevolent that it even intimidated Adelina herself.

 _To be continued..._


	52. Chapter 52

**Chapter Fifty One – Hurricane Adelina pt II**

"My presence infuriates you?" Alexa asked fiercely as she slid off of her Aerodactyl's back, keeping her sinister gaze on Adelina as she approached Keith. "You assault my boyfriend and abduct my brother – what did you expect was going to happen, I take tap-dancing lessons from a Spinda!?" Adelina gritted her teeth furiously as Alexa crouched near Keith, her demeanour finally softening as she swung her backpack off her back and searched through its plentiful contents.

"I would have expected you to have learned your lesson after last time, you little slut..."

"Keith, are you all right?!" Alexa asked as she pulled out a small pouch of Lum berries from her backpack, completely oblivious to Adelina's reply.

"I-I'm fine...it-it just—aagh...!" Keith felt his entire body twitching stiffly again. As Ava clung to him in despair, Alexa held a Lum berry in front of Keith.

"Here; it'll help your paralysis without the need for a rinsing – don't worry, it's safe for human consumption." Keith nodded as he took the green berry from Alexa's palm and tossed it into his mouth. Alexa handed another Lum berry to Iara before handing her the pouch. "Iara, use this to help the others."

"Poreon," Iara nodded hesitantly as she quickly ate the berry lying on Alexa's hand; with her paralysis cured, she took the pouch in her mouth and hurried over to Reese.

"Aerooooo!" Alexa looked up at her Aerodactyl.

"What's the matter, Pteros?"

"Aero," Pteros used his tail to point at one of his feet, the golden tail ring capturing some of the sunlight and accidentally blinding Keith for a brief moment. Confused, Alexa helped Keith onto his feet before she investigated Pteros's foot; Pteros lifted his foot off of the ground and revealed Adelina's Luxury Ball partly sunken into the grass.

"Ah, yes, that's mine," Adelina said smugly as Alexa picked up the Poké Ball and brushed some of the soil and grass strands from its surface. She opened it as she examined it for any damage. "I was in the process of adding a new Pokémon to my collection when you-" All of a sudden, Alexa closed and compressed the Luxury Ball before putting it in her pocket. Adelina was livid. "Excuse me! That is MY Poké Ball, you little-"

"You destroyed Xavier's Poké Ball! Consider your debt for that repaid," Alexa said nastily as Iara and Reese hurried over to the heavily wounded Sawsbuck. Keith watched them anxiously, especially after noting the pain he was in. "Now, let my brother go! He hasn't done anything to you!"

"I don't think I will, darling," Adelina said with a devilish smile on her cheek. Keith looked at Alexa worriedly.

"I-I'm so sorry, Alexa...! I-I tried to help him, but—" Keith fell silent as Alexa held her arm out in front of him.

"Keenan is my priority right now; I'll hear the full story when we're out of her crosshairs." Keith felt concerned, but nodded understandingly. Adelina laughed.

"You mean to tell me that the cause for our encounter on Route 7 is your priority?!" Alexa glared savagely at Adelina.

"Meaning?!"

"Oh, come on, darling, you know precisely what I'm talking about. I told you; Silvia saw you conversing with your little brother regarding what I've been up to...are you seriously going to save the one responsible for your whole world crashing on top of you?" she asked tauntingly. Keith panicked a little, but Alexa closed her eyes, took a deep breath as she clenched both of her fists.

"I don't plan to...for one thing..." Alexa opened her eyes and stared demoniacally at Adelina. "She's not in distress." Pteros sniggered at the comeback, but Keith smiled nervously; he could tell she was withholding a lot more anger than she was showing – and feared what might happen if she were to snap. Keenan smirked briefly before the annoyed Jellicent tightened her grip on him.

"H-How DARE you?!"

"No! How dare YOU hurt my brother AND my boyfriend?! I told you; I've been trying to stay AWAY from your nonsense, yet here you are making things far more personal than they need to be! I am sick to DEATH of this sort of thing happening to me and I am NOT going to take it anymore – this is going to stop right here, right now!"

"They WON'T stop until I have my way!" Adelina said angrily. Francesca and Huey glared daggers at Pteros, but the Aerodactyl shrugged at the pair; it was clear that he couldn't care less for the Gothitelle and Delcatty staring fiercely at him.

"Holding my brother hostage will help you get your way!?" Alexa asked interrogatively.

"It might... After all, I need to punish him for being a little snoop," Adelina said arrogantly as she glanced at Keenan.

"A-Alex, help...!"

"Hang on, Keenan, help's at hand!" Alexa called as she took her five remaining Poké Balls from her belt and held them in both hands. Adelina chortled.

"Are you seriously proposing we battle again?!"

"Last time, you forced my hand; that's not the case this time! Everyone, I need your help! ALL of you!" Alexa cried as she tossed all five of her Poké Balls into the air; all five Pokémon emerged from their Poké Balls with differing displays – Kayla leapt out from a yellow lightning bolt, Layla burst through yellow flower petals, a Mawile with a green band on her ear-like extensions jumped out of an explosion of blue confetti, Jollie sprung from a large pink heart and Ryder emerged from a ring of rainbow stars. All five Pokémon landed in front of Alexa, glaring ferociously at Adelina, having realised the situation at hand. Adelina scowled at the little army in front of her, her glare fixated on Layla in particular.

"You don't deserve such a rare Pokémon, Alexa..."

"Layla, Ryder, Jollie, you three head over to Robbie and make sure he's okay!" Alexa instructed firmly, refusing to let Adelina torment her further.

"You got it!" Ryder nodded as he, Layla and Jollie hurried over to the wounded Sawsbuck. Alexa took one extra Poké Ball from her pocket, encased in a Seal capsule with a blue flame seal on the upper half of the Poké Ball, as she looked over at Pteros.

"Pteros, I need you in your Poké Ball for now; I can't risk you suffering any injuries in case we need to escape quickly."

"Aero," Pteros nodded happily.

"As if I'd let you escape me AGAIN, Alexa!" Adelina shouted as Pteros was recalled into his Poké Ball. "If you intend to finish what we started—"

"What YOU started," Alexa corrected forcefully. "And I'm not leaving without my brother!"

"Alexa, are you seriously going to battle her again?! After Xavier-"

"I do, Keith," Alexa said quickly. Her answer alarmed him.

"But-"

"Alex!" Alexa looked back at Ryder, who stood near Robbie's wounded leg and faced her with extreme worry. "His leg's pretty bad!"

"How bad?"

"Broken!" Ryder called back. "What do we do?!" Alexa looked back at Adelina and gave her a little scowl before looking back at her Lucario.

"Protect him for as long as you can! I have a feeling things are going to get messy again!" she replied authoritatively. Ryder, though reluctantly, nodded. Adelina roared with amused laughter.

"Are you serious right now?! I admit you've learned to stock up on supplies since we last battled, but are you truly allowing yourself and your Pokémon to suffer all over again?! You can't stand up to me, Alexa!"

"I can't! Not on my own, at least," Alexa retorted as she looked back at Keith. Keith stared at her almost in terror.

"Wait, what...?!" Alexa's hardened look gradually became a look of near desperation, which alarmed Keith further. "Wait...y-you're not saying what I think you're saying...?!"

"I need your help," Alexa said bluntly.

"That's what I thought you were saying! Alexa, how am I supposed to help you?!" Keith asked in a panic. "I mean, I-I'm not a Trainer and the only Pokémon I have that COULD battle isn't trained to do so!" Adelina watched Keith with amusement, but Reese, Iara and Ava looked up at him with worry. Adelina laughed even harder.

"First you were ill-equipped for battle, now you're seeking the co-operation of a boy who doesn't even have a Trainer Card?! Oh my days, Alexa, you're killing me here! ...ow, my belly...!" Alexa chose to ignore Adelina's roaring laughter and faced Keith directly, looking into his chocolate brown eyes sincerely.

"I know it's a gargantuan ask, but...I need your help."

"But-"

"Keenan's indisposed...and I can't handle Adelina on my own... Please, Keith...you're the only one I can ask right now..." Keith looked at Alexa with grave concern; though subtle, he could see her desperation in her eyes.

"I don't know if I can do this...I mean...the whole point of us being here was to train Ava...she's not ready for this and neither am I! Are you sure I'm even the right person to ask?!"

"I trust you," Alexa replied, without even a hint of hesitation in her voice. Keith was surprised to hear such a declaration uttered so quickly and so confidently. Nevertheless, it put a smile on Keith's face as he nodded.

"And I trust you; if you think I can do this, I'll prove you right." He looked down at Ava, leaving Alexa smiling with sheer glee. "Ava, think you can do this?" Ava quivered in place as she looked over at Adelina; she was breathing rapidly to the point of hyperventilating from laughing so hard – Huey and Francesca were at her side, trying to calm her down whilst panicking over her inability to breath properly. Then, Ava looked over at Keenan; she could see the mild pain he was in whilst under the grip of Adelina's Jellicent – the sight both made her pity the boy and resentful towards the Jellicent. Ava looked back at Robbie; he was surrounded by Alexa's protective Pokémon, but struggled to endure his excruciating pain – she felt herself becoming a little more angrier than she was before as she looked up at Keith, giving him a nod in response to his question.

"Pichu."

"Sounds like a yes to me, Kitten," Keith smirked. Alexa nodded at him.

"Thank you, Keith...!" She looked back at Adelina just as she regained her composure. "Last chance, Adelina! Let my brother go and things don't have to get so ugly!" Adelina tried not to laugh again.

"You're seeking the help from an inexperienced little bastard...what makes you think I'll take you seriously NOW!?" Alexa shrugged.

"Have it your way. Kayla, you're up first-"

"No!" Keith exclaimed in protest. "Not your Luxray!" Alexa turned to Keith in bafflement. "Her Electric attacks won't help; they'll be drawn to Ava like the Gothitelle's was!" Alexa was flabbergasted.

"Ava attracts Electric attacks?" she asked. Keith's nod only provided her with a huge grin. "She has the Lightningrod ability! Great!"

"Eh?" Keith was left flummoxed, but Alexa faced her Luxray.

"You heard the man, Kayla! Ready to shake things up a bit?"

"Lux-ray!" Kayla nodded keenly.

"Millie, you stay back for now; I may need you later on."

"Maw-ile," Millie nodded respectfully.

"So, you truly think you can defeat me, Alexa?" Adelina asked cockily. "I'd love to see you try; it'll be a perfect opportunity for your baby brother to learn not to cross Adelina Cross and escape unpunished!" As he attempted to endure the pain of Dolores's tight grip on his arms and legs, Keenan saw Alexa smirking at Adelina.

"Defeat you? I didn't say that was on my agenda."

"Very good; because I don't intend to let you – I have no intention on losing to some emotional bimbo and her bitch."

"Kayla, start things off with a Fire Fang attack!" Alexa instructed instantly. Kayla roared as she dashed towards Huey, her fangs burning in bright orange flames.

"Oh, no you don't... Francesca, Dark Pulse the Luxray! Huey, get that Pichu and bring her to me!" Adelina commanded.

"Crap, what do I do?!" Keith panicked.

"Ava, Thundershock!" Alexa called quickly.

"P-Pi-CHU!" In haste, Ava released an unsteady burst of electricity from her body, which detered the Delcatty as he ran over to her with the intent of snatching her with his teeth. Huey hissed viciously and slashed at Ava with his claws veiled in a weak shadow that was hardly noticeable. Ava squealed in fear as she ran and hid behind Keith's leg. At the same time, Kayla leapt away from Francesca's stream of dark purple rings and sunk her flaming teeth into the Gothitelle's shoulder; Francesca suddenly began to flash in a red glow as Kayla almost spat her target out of her mouth and ran back towards Alexa with a look of disgust on her face – Gothitelle don't taste very good, apparently! Alexa looked back at Keith.

"All Pokémon inherit at least one move from their parents after birth; now that we know that Ava knows Thundershock, she can at the very least protect herself, as we've just seen..." Keith nodded.

"Okay, but Thundershock alone isn't going to help..."

"It won't, so we're going to train Ava while I have Kayla stall for time," Alexa smiled, keeping her voice quiet enough to prevent Adelina hearing her.

"Stall for time?"

"Trust me," Alexa winked.

"Of course I do, but...how are we going to teach a Lightningrod Pichu Electric attacks?"

"We can teach her other attacks that aren't Electric type for the moment," Alexa said as she looked towards Keenan, who was still fighting his battle to breathe. "We can't afford to put time into working around Ava's ability right now..."

"Francesca, what the heck are you doing?! Use Shadow Ball on that bitch of a Luxray! Huey, you had better get me that Pichu, even if you have to attack Keith and/or Alexa to do it!" Adelina screamed lividly.

"Gothitelle!" Furious, Francesca formed a shadowy sphere of deep purple and black energy in between her hands and pushed it towards Kayla while Huey raced towards Keith, his eyes fixated on the little Pichu behind his leg.

"Kayla, use Quick Attack! Ava, watch and copy her!"

"Luxray!" Kayla ran head first into Francesca's Shadow Ball attack and broke through the technique, but not without her face and mane suffering from very mild burns, and tackled into Francesca with blinding speed. Ava looked at the fast-approaching Delcatty and blindly ran towards him, eyes shut tightly as she jumped and slammed her head into his neck; while Ava failed to knock him to the ground as Kayla had done to Francesca, she certainly succeeded in making it difficult for Huey to breathe, as he was hacking, gagging and coughing after such a hard knock to his throat.

"That's the way!" Keith yelled encouragingly. "Now use Thundershock!" Alexa smiled at Keith; he seemed to be getting the hang of battling.

"Pichu!" Ava, taking advantage of Huey's fatigue, released a slightly more concentrated burst of electricity that shocked him.

"You fucking annoying little turds!" Adelina screeched. "I think it's time I made things even more difficult," she said nastily as she took out another Poké Ball from her bag. "Hyacinth, sweetheart, Sludge Bomb attack on whichever target you see first!" she shouted as she opened her Poké Ball. The Vileplume burst forth from the shower of pink flower petals and unleashed a barrage of sludge balls at Ava.

"Kayla, you know what to do!" Alexa called.

"Luxray!" Kayla nodded as she ran towards Ava and grabbed her with electrified teeth as she saved the Pichu from the poisonous onslaught. Keith spotted the electricity dancing around Kayla's teeth, which began to course around Ava's entire being.

"Thunder Fang?"

"Yep! Ava's a little stronger now."

"Stronger?" Adelina asked in puzzlement. "I thought she had the ability that heals the Pokémon when it's hit with electricity."

"You're confusing Lightningrod with Volt Absorb," Alexa explained calmly. Adelina blinked, but soon chuckled.

"In either case, it's still a rare ability for a Pichu and I am going to get her...one way or another..." She looked over at Keenan. "Even if I must use the little one for ransom..." Alexa suddenly felt highly infuriated and felt a twitch in her eye.

"Kayla, Fire Fang that Vileplume!"

"Luxray!" Kayla ran towards Hyacinth with her teeth ablaze and ready to bite down on whatever stands in her way.

"Huey, get that Pichu!"

"Again with this...? Ava, Thundershock again!" Keith instructed.

"Pichu!" Ava nodded as she ran towards Huey and shocked him once again to stop him in his tracks; the lightning bolt that struck him was thicker than the previous one and left him with static electricity coursing all over his body, numbing his muscles and causing him to collapse onto the ground.

"Ugh! Oh, how DARE you?!" Adelina huffed snootily. "As soon as you're MY Pokémon, I'm going to punish you for what you've done to my darling Delcatty!"

"P-Pichu..." Ava was intimidated.

"Don't listen to her, Ava!" Keith encouraged. "You're doing great!" Ava smiled and blushed as she heard Keith's sentiment.

"Hyacinth, Toxic that little rat right now!"

"Vileplume!" Hyacinth complied with a cunning smirk as she released a cloud of deep purple spores that sped towards Ava.

"Maybe this will help me capture you!"

"Millie, go!" Alexa cried quickly. "Grab Ava with Thunder Fang!"

"Mawile!" Millie hurried to Ava's rescue as she used the giant set of jaws growing from the top of her head, its teeth crackling with electricity, to scoop the little Pichu and hoist her into the air; Ava breathed rapidly out of fear of being trapped in the Mawile's jaws, but she saw that the poisonous cloud swamped her hero instead of her. As soon as the cloud waned, Millie smirked at the bemused Vileplume; the poison spores hadn't affected her at all!

"W-What?!"

"Electric types can't be paralysed...and Steel types can't be poisoned," Alexa grinned wittily.

"You fucking little bitch!" Adelina shouted angrily as she stomped her foot in frustration. "Now it's personal!" Alexa lost her temper.

"It's ALREADY personal – you're holding my brother hostage, you sociopath!"

"THAT is why you should choose your words carefully, young lady!" Adelina said demandingly as she took out another Poké Ball from her bag; it had a white confetti seal on the capsule covering the Poké Ball. "Silvia, you're back on, sweetheart! Use Bug Bite on that bitch Alexa RIGHT NOW!" she shrieked violently as she opened the Poké Ball, releasing her Beautifly with an explosion of white confetti.

"Alexa-"

"I know. Millie, toss Ava towards the Beauifly!"

"Ava, Thundershock it!"

"Ma-wi-LE!" Millie swung her jaws around and tossed Ava towards the Beautifly zooming towards Alexa; as soon as she touched the Butterfly Pokémon, Ava released an even larger burst of electricity from her body, sending Silvia crashing into the grass beneath her. Ava ran away from the grounded Beautifly as static electricity coursed all over her body as well.

"What the actual HELL?! Are you seriously trying to make me angry?! Because you know what will happen if you make me angry, Alexa!" Adelina warned viciously. With a snap of her fingers, Keenan breathlessly cried out in agony as Dolores tightened her grip on him. Suddenly, Keith and Alexa began to panic, which hadn't escaped Ryder's notice; he and the other Pokémon were watching the battle, as they had nothing to protect Robbie from. For now.

"Alex, let ME battle in Ava's place!" Ryder called. "You're not getting anywhere with this and you're-"

"I KNOW, Ryder!" Alexa responded angrily. Ryder recoiled, but understood her frustration. "Dammit... Think, Alexa, think...!" she said spitefully to herself as she looked around at her surroundings.

"Advantage, Adelina," Adelina said mockingly as she took her final Poké Ball from her bag; Alexa recognised the black smoke seal on the capsule and felt sick to her stomach.

"...Ryder...! You have something to protect Robbie from now...!"

"Huh? What are you talking about?" Keith asked, confused and concerned for Alexa's sudden state of terror.

"Carter, honey! YOUR TURN!" Adelina cackled as she opened the Poké Ball. A huge smokescreen veiled the entirety of Adelina's side of the field for a few seconds before waning, revealing the iconic figure that was Carter, the Malamar responsible for Xavier's hospitalisation and the destruction of the Zoroark's Poké Ball. The very sight of the Overturning Pokémon sent shivers down Ryder's spine, made Jollie weak at the knees and Alexa's stomach turn.

"B-B-Buneary...!"

"S-Stay here, Jollie," Ryder said quietly.

"Nothing to say, Alexa?! I'm not surprised; Carter DID leave a very lasting impression on you AND your Pokémon, after all!" Adelina said boastfully. "And you certainly left one on him as well." Carter focused his attention on Alexa and grinned menacingly at her, prompting Kayla and Millie to step in front of her protectively. "I'll make this easy for you two."

"How?" Keith wondered as Ava ran towards Kayla and stood next to her as she looked at the Malamar in confusion.

"Keith, if you surrender that Pichu to me...I'll let the boy go and nobody needs to get hurt...again." Alexa felt more offended than she could ever recall; she felt a twitch in her eye again. Keith was almost as angry as Alexa, but took a slightly calmer approach.

"You can't use Keenan as a means to bargain with me; he's not my brother – I HAVE no brothers or sisters!"

"I didn't necessarily need to know that little titbit, but my demand still stands; the Pichu for Alexa's brother. Or must I take both Thorndyke siblings hostage to make you surrender to my whim?" In that instant, Keith grabbed Alexa and clung onto her and glared savagely at Adelina; Alexa was heavily confused and alarmed, yet she felt herself blushing a little.

"You lay a FINGER on my girl and I swear to Arceus I'll take your ARM off!" Keith threatened fiercely.

"Cute. However, you shouldn't make any threat you're not prepared to enforce, darling," Adelina sniggered. "On the other hand...I'm more than equipped to act on MY threats... Carter, sweetheart, show them what I mean. Keenan, honey, are you watching?"

"Huh?" Keenan watched in confusion as Carter's eyes shone in a brief flash of white light. Suddenly, Kayla and Millie's stances relaxed as their eyes turned pale and soulless, their expressions turning completely blank. Alexa recognised what was happening to her Luxray and Mawile and it horrified her.

"RAAAAAY!" Kayla suddenly spun around and lunged at Alexa. Keith kept his grip on her and dragged her away from Kayla's path.

"MAWILE!" Millie attempted to sink her large jaws into Keith's leg, but Jollie hastily slammed the tip of her right ear, brimming with red and orange flames, onto the Mawile's head, knocking the Mawile out in one attack and protecting Keith's leg. Jollie suddenly looked up at Alexa apologetically.

"B-Buneary!"

"It-it's okay," Alexa said shakily as she recalled her fainted Mawile into her Poké Ball. "Y-You did what you had to," she continued as she returned her hypnotised Luxray to her Poké Ball as well.

"What the hell was that?!"

"That, Keith, was Carter's unique skill; he can take control of absolutely any living being he and/or I want him to control," Adelina explained proudly.

"Xavier said that happened to me!" Ryder exclaimed anxiously. "I can't remember anything about it, though!"

"But the best part is...Carter can also control AS MANY living beings as he so desires!" Adelina boasted. "And, trust me, I could have him take control of EVERY Pokémon you have if it means I get my way! So...what say you?"

"I thought your intent was to punish Keenan for looking at some stupid photo and asking his sister about it," Keith said with a raised eyebrow.

"I can do that either by hurting him myself or by tormenting you and your whore; it makes no difference to me, but the latter may also give me a very special Pichu..."

"What do we do, Kitten?" Keith asked in a gentle whisper. Alexa began to panic; with the culprit behind Xavier's extreme injury standing before her once again, what COULD they do? He had the power to turn every single battling Pokémon against them at the drop of a hat...if that were to happen, then all hope would be lost. She looked at Keenan, who, in turn, was looking at her with tremendous anguish; seeing the pain he was in undoubtedly upset her, but it also motivated her to keep fighting – she stood up as tall as she could stand and stared Adelina down confidently.

"Ryder...raise your shield. Layla, Jollie, I need you front and centre." Though immensely surprised, Layla and Jollie obeyed their instruction and ran in front of Alexa and Keith as they prepared for battle alongside Ava. Ryder held both paws into the air as a translucent teal green force field materialised and formed a protective dome over him, Robbie, Reese and Iara.

"Alexa?"

"I'll keep on fighting," Alexa said firmly as she held a hand over Keith's and used the other to release her Luxray from her Poké Ball again; Kayla blinked in confusion before she resumed her previous protective stance in front of Alexa. "And I won't stop until I get my brother back." Keith tightened his hold on her as he matched her determination, regardless of how subtle it was.

"I've got your back one hundred percent of the way, Kitten." Seeing Alexa's fighting spirit put a smile on Keenan's face.

"Alex..."

"Urgh, give me a break..." Adelina sighed. "Have it your way, Alexa...just remember you brought this on yourself." Alexa and Keith glared at their adversary.

"Believe me," Alexa began. "By the time this is over, it won't be me you'll be grinding your teeth over."

 _To be continued..._


	53. Chapter 53

**Chapter Fifty Two – Hurricane Adelina pt III**

"In the meantime...Carter, sweetie, get Silvia and Huey back here! Hyacinth, Francesca, attack them right now!" Adelina commanded snappily. Without a speck of hesitation, Carter's eyes shone in a brief white flash as the eyes of his Beautifly and Delcatty allies grew cloudy and soulless. As they stood up and moved sluggishly over to Adelina, Francesca and Hyacinth rushed passed them as fast as they could as they prepared to attack Kayla and Layla, who divided and struck the rivalling Gothitelle and Vileplume from their flanks; Kayla sank her frozen fangs into Hyacinth's shoulder while Layla crushed her glimmering claws down on Francesca's back. Ava looked around at the battle field, completely lost as to what, if anything, she should do. Carter snapped Huey and Silvia out of their trances the very instant Adelina cured their paralysis.

"This is going to take forever if she's going to keep healing her Pokémon," Keith complained.

"That's what I'm counting on," Alexa replied quietly as Adelina stood up properly. She sniggered as she looked at Ava with a nasty smile.

"You barely left a dent in my babies, Silvia in particular," she said mockingly. Ava simply blinked in response.

"She hasn't been trained yet!" Keith yelled defensively. "That's why we're here, dammit!"

"And what, pray tell, makes you think that you can train a Pokémon to battle?" Adelina asked; her voice sounded like she was simultaneously mocking Keith and genuinely asking him out of curiosity.

"I don't; that's why I asked Alexa to help me!" Keith yelled in frustration.

"I don't think she's up to the task, honey," Adelina said meanly. Alexa simply glared viciously at Adelina. "I, however, am more than capable of training darling little Pichu..."

"How, by forcing her through Super Training regimens for the next six years?! That's not training, that's torture; any Trainer knows how strenuous those regimens are! And to think that you've forced all six of your Pokémon through all six regimens for six years...that's barbaric beyond all comprehension!" Keith looked at Alexa in confusion.

"Are they really that rough?"

"Let me put it this way; Phoenix was overweight before he went through half of one and half of another – HALF." Keith took a moment to firstly imagine an overweight Charizard before visualising his interpretation of how it transitioned into the Phoenix he knew based on Alexa's response to his query. Then he imagined Adelina's Pokémon undergoing the same and complete process more times than he could count; what he was left with astounded and almost disgusted him.

"Holy Muk, it's like Boot Camp!"

"If you like," Adelina shrugged. "But it's how my babies are as powerful as they are...and once little Pichu is MY little Pichu, she will do the exact same thing." Keith glared savagely at Adelina and was extremely tempted to dash towards her with a fist aimed straight at her nose.

"YOU BITCH!"

"Now, now, there's no need to make a fuss...yet." Adelina's smile waned as she started to get serious; her new look was so cold it sent chills down Layla and Jollie's spines. "Now...I'm going to make this offer just one last time; I am willing to offer you the boy...for the Pichu." Keith shook his head in disbelief.

"Obviously, anything I say to you completely bypasses you; you can't use Keenan against me like this, he is not my brother!" he roared angrily.

"I'll take that as a no. Fine...I'll keep him and I'll get that Pichu my way." Alexa gritted her teeth; she knew things were about to become even harder – she began to wonder how much more time she could buy with the impending difficulty spike.

"What are you going to do?! Have your stupid Malamar take control over EVERY Pokémon in the area and turn them against us?!" Keith yelled threateningly. Alexa glared violently at him; she really wanted to punch him for putting that idea into Adelina's head.

"No...that wouldn't be fun...an easy win is never satisfying..." Adelina's demonic smirk returned. "I'm going to make you squirm...especially YOU, Alexa..." Alexa redirected her nasty glare from Keith to Adelina. "Carter, honey...show them what you can do..."

"Ma-la-mar...!" Carter seemed to match Adelina's smirk as his eyes flashed white for a blinking moment. All of a sudden, Kayla, Layla and Jollie's stances relaxed as their eyes became pale and devoid of soul. When all three Pokémon suddenly turned on Ava, Keith and Alexa began to panic while Ava began to fear for her life as she desperately tried to avoid all three manipulated allies. Ryder, however, was both immensely horrified and consumed with hatred.

"That's it, Alex, I'm going in there-"

"NO, YOU'RE NOT!" Alexa snapped violently as she spun her head to face the equally enraged Lucario; seeing her anger alarmed Ryder. "Stay there and keep that shield up as long as you can hold it!"

"But-"

"Just stay put and keep Robbie and the others safe!" Alexa instructed firmly. From the safety of Ryder's protective barrier, Reese and Iara looked on at the battle with grave anxiety, wanting to offer their assistance desperately. "The fewer Pokémon Carter can control, the better!"

"But-"

"Just do it!" Alexa screamed, almost pleadingly. As much as he wanted to defy her this one time, Ryder sighed as he nodded with submissive compliance.

"Okay..." Alexa focused on the problem in front of her as she took out Pteros's Poké Ball. Keith looked at the Poké Ball and became concerned.

"Hold on...I thought you were going to save him until-"

"I know...but Millie's down for the count and I refuse to risk Robbie's remaining health to send Ryder in to attack the girls..." Alexa clenched the Poké Ball before she pointed it away from her. "Pteros, I need your help!" The Poké Ball opened in her hand, allowing her Aerodactyl to fly from the explosion of blue flames. Pteros spun around and landed in front of Alexa with a bemused look on his face.

"Aero?"

"Afraid not; I need you to battle for now." Pteros smirked.

"Aer-OH!" he nodded eagerly.

"Send out ALL of your Pokémon; they won't help!" Adelina said tauntingly.

"This IS pretty much all of my Pokémon!" Alexa snapped.

"Technically, two thirds of them!" Ryder added loudly.

"Not HELPING, Ryder!" Alexa yelled in frustration.

"Easy, easy," Keith said gently as he subtly tightened his hold on Alexa, though it failed to leave any sort of effect on her conflicting anger and panic.

"Pteros, take Ava and use Iron Tail!"

"AERO!" Pteros zoomed towards the frightened Pichu, desperately trying to avoid each and every attack thrown at her.

"Make things harder for him, dumplings!" Adelina commanded with a psychotic smile.

"Vile!" Hyacinth fired a barrage of explosive seeds from the centre of her head-flower, each and every seed aiming for Pteros.

"Gothitelle!" Francesca released her Dark Pulse attack from her palms, headed straight for Pteros's flightpath.

"REOW!" Huey exhaled an icy cold breath riddled with tiny snowballs at Pteros; the howling blizzard reached the speeding Aerodactyl, but he seemed to be unaffected by it, much to Adelina's horror.

"BEAUU!" Silvia zoomed to meet Pteros face to face, but he was more than content to fly straight into her as he made his way to Ava; Silvia fell to the ground while Pteros scooped the petrified Pichu into one of his talons – just in time to avoid Layla's attack from underground. Seeing Pteros soaring into the air with Ava safely in his talon prompted Keith and Alexa to sigh with relief.

"AEROOOOOO!" Pteros then darted towards Carter, his tail starting to turn into solid iron. Carter looked up at the oncoming Aerodactyl just in time for the flying Fossil Pokémon to swing his tail across and slap the distracted Malamar across the face; the arrow-tipped tail sliced across Carter's face, leaving a relatively deep laceration that bled rather profusely after the attack ended, causing his sky blue blood to pour down his face. However, with Carter's concentration broken, Layla, Jollie and Kayla snapped out of their control. Keith was relieved, but Alexa suddenly panicked more than before.

"Pteros, let Ava go now!" she cried.

"Aero." Though confused, Pteros complied as he gently set Ava down on the grass; as soon as the talons left her airspace, Ava dashed back towards Keith and flung herself at his ankle, clinging to his jeans for dear life as she began to sob. Keith released his hold on Alexa as he crouched to meet Ava's level.

"P-P-Pichu...!"

"It's okay, it's okay," Keith said comfortingly as he scooped the sobbing Tiny Mouse Pokémon into his arms. He sighed as he stood up and faced Alexa solemnly. "I think she's too scared to carry on..." Begrudgingly, Alexa slowly nodded in agreement.

"In her defence, she was thrown into the deep end right off the bat...I'm...I'm sorry, Ava..."

"...P-P-Pichu...!" Ava sniffled.

"Looks like you're on your own now, Alexa," Adelina said with sickening pleasure. Alexa glared coldly at her adversary.

"Your commentary is neither called for nor appreciated!" she shouted angrily.

"Personally, I couldn't care less, darling," Adelina sniggered.

"Alexa, are you able to carry on the battle on your own? I'm going to see if I can get Ava to calm down."

"Whether or not I can or can't doesn't matter; I'm going to have to until she does calm down," Alexa replied. She looked over at her confused girls. "You girls ready to continue!?"

"Nyah, nyah-yah," Layla shrugged in bafflement. Jollie and Kayla, though sharing Layla's look of confusion, all nodded at Alexa.

"Then let's do it! Layla, use X-Scissor! Jollie, Sky Uppercut! Kayla, Fire Fang!"

"NYAAAAAH!" Layla charged towards Carter with her claws shining in a pale lime green glow. She crossed her arms together as she attempted to slash the Malamar in an X formation, but Carter grabbed both of Layla's arms, swung her around his head and slammed her into the ground.

"RAAAAY!" Kayla set her eyes and burning fangs on the recuperating Vileplume; however, Francesca intercepted her and attempted to slug her in the face with a Shadow Ball, but instead took the Luxray's Fire Fang attack in Hyacinth's stead without intending to do so – even Kayla was baffled at what took place!

"BUUUUUUUUUUN...!" Jollie zoomed straight towards Huey with the tip of her right paw enveloped in a pale blue light, who appeared to be distracted by Adelina watching him expectantly. "NEARY!" Jollie punched Huey underneath his chin with her glowing paw in an uppercut fashion; Huey flew upwards before crashing into the ground with a loud thud. Adelina looked over at Jollie in complete disarray.

"I-I don't understand! How is Cute Charm not working on the Buneary?!" Alexa raised an eyebrow.

"Cute Charm doesn't always work," she said plainly. "Or maybe your Delcatty doesn't have-"

"FUCK YOU!" Adelina suddenly shrieked nastily. "My Delcatty DOES have Cute Charm and your Buneary should be affected by it!"

"...even so...Cute Charm doesn't always take effect with each hit... In either case...Jollie, keep your distance from Huey, okay?!" Jollie smiled at Alexa.

"Bun-eary!" she saluted in response. Alexa glanced behind her and noticed Keith attempting to settle Ava's skyrocketing emotions. She then looked around at the mess of a battle in front of her; with Ava out of the battle, she was outnumbered, though, in the back of her mind, she knew the numbers were insignificant if her opponent outclassed her in strength. As she surveyed the battle, she couldn't help but keep her eyes on her struggling brother and the smug Jellicent holding him captive; the more she watched Keenan fighting to breathe and enduring the presumably excruciating pain he was in, the more she panicked.

"Ava, please try?"

"Pichu, Pichu!" Alexa could hear Keith attempting to reason with Ava, though, at the present, it seemed Ava was refusing to get back into the battle out of fear.

"I know you're scared; it's my first time in a battle, too."

"Pi?!" Ava looked up at Keith in shock.

"But it's okay; we've got the best support I know," Keith said kindly. Alexa felt fuzzy after hearing his words. "Please, will you give it another try? You were doing really, really well!" Ava appeared unsure at first, but maintained this uncertainty as she nodded.

"Pi-Pichu," she replied as she hopped out of Keith's arms, scurrying into the battle field. Keith sighed with relief.

"Okay, we're back in."

"Thanks, Keith..."

"Sure; I mean, this makes the numbers even now, doesn't it?"

"Yeah, but I meant...thanks for believing in me..." Keith smiled kindly at her.

"Of course."

"If you two want a room, I can send you straight to the hospital if you want to get down and dirty!" Adelina said impatiently. Keith and Alexa stared quizzically at her.

"That doesn't even make any sense," Keith said bluntly.

"Nor does you still keeping your nerve, Alexa!" Adelina snapped furiously.

"Hey, I wasn't even talking to you!" Alexa retorted defensively.

"I don't care! Carter, do your thing and get that Pichu right now!" Adelina screeched demandingly. Carter's eyes shone white for a fleeting moment as Pteros suddenly relaxed, his eyes losing their sign of life. With a loud screech, Pteros zoomed towards Ava with his talons ready to snatch her; Ava shivered in place, but she stood her ground regardless. Kayla saw Pteros's forced approach and hurried to intercept him; Jollie and Layla protected Kayla as she rushed to try and protect Ava, covering the Luxray with an X-Scissor to neutralise Francesca's Dark Pulse and a Fire Punch flurry to block Hyacinth's Seed Bomb barrage. In the end, Kayla successfully intercepted the manipulated Pteros and tackled into him as she became completely cloaked in golden yellow electricity; however, the electricity went straight towards Ava and into her body, rendering Kayla's Wild Charge attack to nothing more than a mere Tackle.

"Kayla! Lightningrod!" Alexa called. Kayla, after recovering from the weakened attack, growled to herself as she slapped her forehead with her paw. She snarled again as her fangs froze over, intent on attacking Pteros again. "Kayla, no-"

"LUUUUUUUH!" Before she could attack, however, Pteros sank his fiery jaws into Kayla, grabbing her by her torso. Pteros effortlessly tossed Kayla to the side, leaving her to lie in her own blood. "Lux...ray..." Alexa was almost petrified to see such a wound on one of her Pokémon – and from ANOTHER one of her Pokémon, no less! Hesitantly, Alexa took Kayla's Poké Ball and pointed it to her.

"K-Kayla, return...!" Kayla seemed to exhale a sigh of relief as she was recalled back to her sanctuary. Ava watched Kayla returning to her Poké Ball with devastation.

"Now what?!" Keith wondered. Alexa looked around at the battle again; Layla and Jollie hurried to Ava's side and readied themselves to attack as Pteros, Francesca, Huey and Hyacinth steadily approached them. Adelina retuned Silvia to her Poké Ball, only to send her back out in an instant and spray the Beautifly's entire body with a medicinal spray. Silvia soon flew passed Carter, who remained where he stood with his main tentacles slightly pointed towards his Aerodactyl pawn, as she joined her comrades. However, Alexa soon realised that, as she looked over at Keenan, nobody was making sure Dolores was protected! Suddenly, an idea began to grow inside her mind as she looked down at the three Pokémon in front of her; for some reason, her focus was mainly on Jollie. She looked over at Keenan one more time and realised...there was a chance she could save Keenan! A minuscule one, but a chance nonetheless! She suddenly looked down at Jollie.

"Jollie!" Jollie looked up at Alexa in confusion, especially after seeing the anxiety riddling her face. "Please, I need you to use Bounce!" she pleaded as she looked up at Dolores. Jollie looked at what Alexa was looking at and stared blankly for a few seconds before realising what Alexa was asking of her. She nodded with determination as she sprang up as high into the sky as she could; she jumped so high that she could hardly be seen!

"What is THAT going to accomplish?!" Adelina laughed mockingly.

"Layla, no holding back! X-Scissor Carter!"

"Alex, no!" Ryder cried in protest. His cries fell on deaf ears, however, as Layla literally plowed her way through the mini army in front of her as she sped towards the puppeteer Pokémon.

"Ava, try Thundershock again!"

"Pichu!" Ava nodded, apparently with a bit more confidence than when she started battling. "Piii-CHU!" Ava released a small concentrated bolt of electricity at the possessed Aerodactyl in front of her; surprisingly to Keith and Alexa, there was enough strength in the attack to slightly push Pteros away from her. However, that didn't stop Adelina's Pokémon looming closer to her.

"Ava, get away from them and used ranged attacks!" Keith instructed quickly.

"Pi-CHU!" Ava darted away from the army approaching her and carried on with her Thundershock onslaught.

"NYAAAAH!" Layla managed to evade Carter's lunging tentacles and cross her glowing claws across his torso; Layla attacked with such brute force and at such a close range that not only was the resulting laceration deeper than the one Pteros left on Carter's face, but the Malamar's blood ended up splattering onto Layla's face. As Carter writhed in agony, Pteros snapped out of his trance and, having noticed where he found himself, immediately attacked Francesca, Hyacinth, Huey and Silvia with streams of light engulfing him.

"Pteros, are you all right?!" Alexa called. Pteros waited until all four of Adelina's Pokémon were dazed before he dignified Alexa with a look of puzzlement.

"Aerooooo," he replied, scratching his head with the clawed hand on the bend of his right wing.

"D-Don't worry about it," Alexa said shakily as she looked up into the sky; Jollie seemed to be taking an oddly long time to fall back down to earth. "...j-just keep doing what you're doing."

"Aeroooo!" Pteros roared excitedly as he flew straight towards Francesca with his tail swiftly turning into solid iron once more. Francesca tried desperately to block the attack, but the Aerodactyl's tail proved to be too strong for her to push away and was knocked to the floor as it slapped her in the shoulder – the force of the attack was so strong that a loud crack could be heard from Francesca's shoulder! The Gothitelle lay on the grass holding her cracked shoulder, sobbing and moaning in agony. Adelina, hearing her Pokémon's cries of pain and despair, became sincerely infuriated.

"Stand UP, Francesca, and turn that Aerodactyl BACK into a fossil!" she screamed insistently. Alexa, Keith and Keenan were horrified as they saw Francesca straining onto her feet, but it wasn't because Francesca was actually standing up.

"What is WRONG with you?!" Alexa asked furiously. "Her shoulder's more than likely to be broken – I HEARD that crack! How can you make her continue to fight in her condition?!"

"Because I SAID SO!" Adelina roared in anger. "Francesca, Dark Pulse that dinosaur!" Francesca looked at her now limp arm in conflict; there was no question that the pain she was in was almost unbearable, but she didn't want to disobey her master – what was she to do? "Francesca!"

"She needs both arms to use Dark Pulse and one of them is out of commission – she CAN'T use Dark Pulse!" Alexa argued.

"She CAN use Dark Pulse and she WILL if she doesn't want to be PUNISHED afterwards!" Adelina shouted demandingly. "Now stop being silly, Francesca, and use Dark Pulse right this minute!" Alexa looked up at the sky, only to smile with complete euphoria; the tiny figure of her bouncing Buneary steadily grew as she plummeted to the earth and slammed straight on top of Dolores's incredibly large head! As Jollie landed on top of her, Dolores accidentally released her grip on Keenan and his newfound freedom certainly hadn't escaped anyone's notice.

"BUN!" Jollie bounced away from Dolores and ran alongside Keenan as he immediately fled towards Alexa.

"Oh, no you don't! STOP HIM!" Adelina shrieked. Huey was the first to race into action, lunging straight towards Keenan, his claws enveloped in a shadow that, oddly enough, appeared to be faded somewhat. Hyacinth's entire body shone in a lime green aura as she released a wave of light specks shaped like winged insects at the boy; Ava kept her eyes on Hyacinth's use of the technique as she carried it out.

"LAYLA!"

"NYAH!" Layla unknowingly evaded Carter's Night Slash attack as she lunged at Keenan. She reached him just in time to deter the attacking Delcatty with her Fire Punch attack, slamming the burning fist down on the back of Huey's neck, while Jollie used her own Fire Punch as a means of deflecting the swarm of fake flies in front of her. Keith spotted Silvia flying away from the battle field in preparation for a stronger attack.

"Alexa, what did the Vileplume use? Ava was watching it."

"Hidden Power," Alexa replied.

"Ava, try Hidden Power!" Keith shouted. Silvia attempted to strike Keenan with another Aerial Ace attack, but Ava ran towards the Beautifly and replicated Hyacinth's attack; her body became enveloped in red aura as she pushed a wave of artificial fire at Silvia, halting her in her tracks. To Adelina's immense fury, Francesca was the only one to not do anything to prevent Keenan and Jollie from finally reaching Alexa, but it was watching the siblings embracing one another that truly made her blood boil. Alexa crouched as Keenan clung to her, quivering in fear and sobbing a little. Alexa, too, was ever so slightly sobbing, but out of joy as she held her brother as close to her as she possibly could. Ava and Layla made their way over to the reunion, a wave of relief washing over them, Keith, Ryder, Reese and especially Iara as everyone knew they had one less thing to worry about.

"A-Alex...! Alex...!"

"It's okay, I've got you," Alexa said endearingly. She allowed him to nestle his head between her neck and shoulder.

"I-I was so scared...!" Keith crouched down and helped Alexa comfort her terrified brother.

"It's okay, it's over now..."

"Carter, honey...Night Slash..." Adelina said quietly through tightly gritted teeth and while glaring violently at her idle Gothitelle. Carter mercilessly charged towards Francesca and slashed his glowing violet tentacle across her other shoulder, almost slicing her arm off entirely. Francesca's screams of agony almost echoed throughout the whole forest and alarmed even the rest of Adelina's Pokémon, Huey included! Alexa made certain Keenan didn't look at Francesca's injuries, keeping his head nestled between her neck and shoulder.

"What's WRONG with you?! You just attacked-"

"I KNOW WHAT JUST HAPPENED!" Adelina screamed violently. "You will NOT get the better of me AGAIN, you little whore! I WON'T BE DEFEATED AGAIN! Carter, Silvia, Huey, Hyacinth, Dolores, KILL HER AT ONCE!" The lack of remorse behind such an immoral command left Keith, Keenan, Alexa and their Pokémon horrified beyond all understanding, but Keith held onto both Alexa and Keenan protectively as all five Pokémon lunged towards them, each of them enveloped in streams of orange energy over a thin layer of purple energy.

"YOU WISH!" Ryder roared violently as he abruptly ended his protective dome to rush over to the battle field, despite Alexa's earlier instruction to not intervene, his entire body burning fiercely in his cyan aura. Reese and Iara stayed with the heavily wounded Sawsbuck and watched as Ryder prepared an Aura Sphere in one paw, a Dark Pulse in the other and started to exhale green embers from his mouth; he aimed all three techniques at three different targets and fired each one simultaneously – Dark Pulse struck Dolores on her face, Aura Sphere crashed into Huey's face and Dragon Pulse knocked Silvia out of the sky. Layla lunged towards Hyacinth, being the one closest to her, with her fists burning in bright orange flames. Jollie and Ava raced towards Carter, Jollie surrounded in a warming white light and Ava surrounded with an intense amount of electricity. Despite the two incredibly powerful attacks colliding with Carter's X-Scissor injury, they proved futile as Carter managed to break through them with ease. Ryder spun around and attempted to intercept the murderous Malamar.

"FAAAAAAAAAAAAR-FETCH'D!" Without warning, a Farfetch'd with scars on his beak flew down from the heavens and in front of Carter, swinging his leek across him as it released a blade of concentrated air at the Topsy-Turvey Pokémon, making him flinch. Keith, Alexa and Keenan looked at their Farfetch'd saviour as he touched down and relaxed his stance, staring menacingly at the squid-like enemy. "Far-fetch'd!"

"Isn't that-" Before Keith could finish his question, three powerful Dragon Pokémon landed on the grass just in front of him, Alexa and Keenan; a Dragonite, a Salamence and an Altaria. Keenan and the teens watched as Hailey and Naomi climbed off of Annabelle's back, Colin and Lily dismounted David and Harvey and Hayden slid off of Rena's back. Alexa in particular was over the moon to see all six adults; she came through after all! Keith was surprised to see Hayden and his relatives all at once, but, at the same time, was glad they showed up.

"Alexa, are you all right?" Hayden asked as he kept his eye on the tremendously horrified Adelina.

"Y-Yeah...we're okay...thank Arceus you're here...!"

"Sorry we're late..." Hayden glared at Adelina with an overwhelming amount of hatred in his eyes that was potentially stronger than the brief hatred he had for Keith. "We'll take it from here." Adelina stared at the new arrivals as her eye twitched wildly...and a psychotic grin reached her lips once more.

 _To be continued..._


	54. Chapter 54

**Chapter Fifty Three – Hurricane Adelina pt IV**

"Hailey... Fancy seeing you here, darling..." Adelina said with false courtesy as her eye began to twitch rapidly. With Adelina's focus being solely on the blonde aunt, Alexa and Keith stood up and practically fled over to Robbie with Keenan closely following his sister. Layla, Ryder and Jollie ran over to their Trainer as she hurriedly inspected the extent of Robbie's injuries; Alexa was particularly worried when she realised Robbie was barely able to keep his eyes open by now. Despite the delightful reunion Keenan had with Iara, they, too, were deeply worried for the Sawsbuck; he got injured in a vain attempt to rescue him – Keenan began to feel overwhelmed with guilt. Keith, on the other hand, started to panic after having seen the deep lacerations so closely; the blood that had escaped them had dried during the battle, which stained his soft coffee brown fur with ugly dark red-brown patches all over his body. All of the adults noticed Adelina's lack of mental stability and were either disturbed or perplexed.

"Are you all right?" Hailey asked with slight genuine concern.

"Just...peachy...I just didn't expect to see you here of all places..." Carter looked back at Adelina and raised an eyebrow; he believed her to be anything but peachy with her looking so close to a complete psychotic breakdown.

"You should have thought of that BEFORE you attacked my son!" Hayden shouted viciously. Lily ever so slightly held onto his arm and shook her head at him, preventing him from rushing straight towards the bronze-haired brute with a fist destined for her face – or something similar. Her touch was just enough to calm him down.

"How did you even-" Adelina suddenly scowled as her blood began to overheat. "ALEXA! It was you, wasn't it?!" Alexa shivered slightly as she felt the hatred in Adelina's voice, but chose not to dignify her with a response; now that her father had arrived with backup, Adelina was no longer her problem.

"She's not your concern, Adelina!" Hailey yelled, starting to lose her patience and any concern she had left for Adelina. "I'M the one you should be concerned about; you didn't just attack my youngest daughter, but my twins as well?! And to attack my youngest nephew on top of that!? You have serious issues!" Adelina scoffed and laughed hysterically, disturbing the other adults even more. Even Naomi was disturbed, and this was her first time seeing Adelina for herself!

"I have issues?! ME?! Honey, your WHOLE FAMILY has issues!" Adelina counter-argued as Pteros steadily moved over towards Alexa; he nuzzled her gently, which seemed to settle her nerves a little, before she kindly decided to return the Aerodactyl to his Poké Ball.

"What's that supposed to mean?!" Harvey asked interrogatively.

"Aipom, Aipom!" Laddy shook his tiny fist at Adelina from Harvey's shoulder.

"I AM making sense, you stupid monkey; what I said is what I mean – your WHOLE FAMILY has issues!" Alexa ever so gently felt around Robbie's body in search of other tender areas or broken bonds; Robbie practically flinched with each stroke and moaned breathlessly when she found his broken leg. "Troy is a Pokémon Breeder who's TERRIFIED of Jellicent, Daniel is an emotionless wreck after the paint incident and Alexa can't keep her nose to herself!" Harvey and Hailey were disturbed by how Adelina knew about Troy and Daniel's pasts, but they, Naomi and Colin were confused about what Adelina said about Alexa. Alexa herself, however, panicked slightly, as did Lily; Hayden, however, gave Adelina the same violent stare Alexa gave her when she first arrived in Entree Forest.

"Alexa can't keep her nose to herself? What's THAT supposed to mean?" Colin wondered.

"Exactly that, dearest," Adelina sniggered.

"But what are you talking about?" Naomi asked in confusion. Adelina chuckled again.

"Alexa, honey! Who was it that kidnapped you again?!" she asked loudly in a heavily mocking tone. Chills ran down Alexa's spine as her horrific past was hinted in front of her aunts and uncles and began to fear their reactions. Ryder, Jollie and Layla looked at her anxiously.

"Seriously? You're going to make things up as you go along just to cover your own ass?!" Hailey asked in disbelief. She suddenly looked at Hayden in confusion when she heard his knuckles cracking as he clenched his fists, but was surprised to see his fearsome glare.

"How would she even make something like that up on the spot?" Harvey questioned as he turned around to face Alexa; her back was turned against him, making it impossible for him to establish her mood. "Is it true, Chick?" he asked carefully. Alexa stayed perfectly still, not dignifying him with a response; whether that was due to fear, remorse or just simply not giving Adelina any satisfaction, Harvey couldn't tell – he felt worried.

"We can worry about it later," Hayden insisted in a low growl. "We need to deal with Adelina first." Alexa sighed with relief; Hayden had just saved her from the awkwardness of potentially repeating her tale of recklessness to her aunts and uncles at a rather inappropriate moment in time. With the issue put aside, Alexa began to raid her backpack for some medical supplies she could use on Robbie straight away; however, as his injuries needed the attention of a doctor, all Alexa could do was disinfect his lacerations with her medicinal spray bottles, which caused the Sawsbuck to moan in agony.

"I'm sorry, Alex, I—"

"Not the time, Ryder," Alexa grumbled as she tried to concentrate on cleaning Robbie's wounds; she was frustrated with herself for not being able to do much more for him. Ryder's ears drooped as he watched Alexa tossing the empty spray bottle into her bag worriedly. "This is bad...I can't do anything for him..."

"Y-You can't?" Keith asked anxiously.

"His wounds are too deep and Potions can't heal broken bones..." Adelina laughed in hysteria.

"Alexa couldn't do much of ANYTHING against my babies! Heck, they even managed to defeat two of her Pokémon without breaking a sweat!" Keith heard Adelina's words clearly and glared viciously at her; her Pokémon didn't break a sweat to defeat Alexa's Mawile and Luxray because THEY DIDN'T defeat Millie and Kayla! "So, what makes any of you think that you have the SLIGHTEST chance against me?!" Harvey turned to Naomi, looking both stern and soft at the same time.

"Naomi, get the kids to a Pokémon Centre," he asked quietly. Naomi nodded as she ran towards Alexa, Keith and Keenan.

"C'mon, honey, we need to go."

"Mistralton," Alexa said insistently. "...Troy's there with Xavier and it's a good distance between us and her."

"We have a better chance of defeating you because we have more experience at battling than the kids do and we actually WANT to battle you!" Hailey shouted nastily in response. "We want your tyranny to end before you get someone KILLED!"

"I'll do what it takes to get what I want!" Adelina screamed arrogantly. However, she saw Naomi releasing Steven from his Poké Ball and relaxing his stance. "Oh, no you fucking don't...! STOP THAT GALLADE! THOSE KIDS ARE NOT TO ESCAPE ME!" On cue, Carter, Huey, Silvia, Hyacinth and Dolores all rushed over towards Steven in hopes of halting his execution of Teleport. Without the need for the command, Annabelle, David, Rena and Tristan charged towards the five enemy Pokémon and intercepted them; Tristan swung his leek across him, which released a blade of concentrated air that struck Hyacinth and Silvia, Rena slammed her tail down on Huey's head, which resulted in the Delcatty accidentally getting a clump of dirt and grass into his mouth, Annabelle flew towards Dolores and scratched her with her tiny talons glimmering in a lime green shine and David stopped mid-flight and fired a large pillar of green fire from his jaws that struck Carter squarely in his scarred face. Adelina was highly offended that four Pokémon were able to rebel against her five remaining Pokémon, but was furious to see Steven ultimately disappearing with Naomi, Keith, Keenan, Alexa and the Pokémon around them. Harvey looked behind him and, noticing the distinct lack of his ex-wife, smiled smugly at Adelina.

"Looks like those kids just escaped you."

"You...you...!" Carter watched Adelina as she tried and barely managed to calm her nerves. Barely. "...fine...it's fine...! I've got this...it's all under control...!" Adelina took a Poké Ball from her purse. "Francesca, return; you're just dead weight to me."

"Gothitelle...!" Francesca said sadly as she was recalled back into the confinement of her Poké Ball.

"Why did you have to say that to your Gothitelle?" Lily asked in disgrace.

"A Pokémon who can't attack isn't worth my time."

"Can't? Or unable to due to injury?" Hayden asked sternly.

"Carter...make sure Hayden's Pokémon suffer excruciatingly; he is far too much like that bitch Alexa."

"I've had it up to HERE with you, Adelina!" Lily snapped viciously.

"We ALL have!" Hailey yelled in agreement. "It ends now!"

"Indeed it does...for you!" Adelina retorted with a maniacal grin on her face.

Steven suddenly appeared in the main lobby of the Mistralton City Pokémon Centre in a brief flash of white light, along with Naomi, Keith, Alexa, Keenan, Robbie, Reese, Ava, Iara, Ryder, Layla and Jollie. Naomi immediately looked over at the reception desk in front of her.

"Can we get some help over here, please?!" she called. In an instant, the nurse on duty behind the desk hurried over to her and repeated Naomi's plea down the nearby corridor; as soon as she reached Robbie, several more nurses and a doctor entered the lobby.

"Get a trolley!" the doctor instructed to one of the nurses next to her. The nurse nodded and ran into the emergency room nearby. The doctor crouched down to Robbie's level and inspected his injuries. "What happened?"

"I-I-I dunno what it was, but...h-his leg's broken and-"

"Doctor!" The nurse returned with a large wheeled stretched the doctor instructed her to retrieve. The doctor looked at the stretcher and nodded.

"Okay, let's get him on there carefully." The nurses all gathered around Robbie as Naomi gently pulled Keith, Alexa and Keenan away from him. Ryder, Jollie, Layla and Steven all moved away from the Sawsbuck on their own accord. "Everyone got a bit? All right, on three; one, two, three!"

"SAW!" Robbie cried out in agony as, with the combined strength of all eight adults around him, he was lifted off of the hard tiled floor and placed onto the softer surface of the hospital trolley.

"Sorry, buddy. All right, let's get him to the ER, stat!" the doctor insisted as she led her team of nurses to the same emergency room the trolley originated. Keith, Ava and Reese watched them anxiously.

"Hang in there...!"

"Pichu..."

"He's in good hands, Keith," Naomi said reassuringly. Her kindness, though, couldn't assuage his fears. Alexa looked up at her aunt, almost fearfully.

"Aunt Naomi, please, you have to help the others against Adelina!" Naomi looked at her niece in bafflement.

"Me?! But I don't know how I could be of any help!"

"J-Just ANY help you can give will help them – even if it's just something small! Please...?" Naomi smiled sweetly at her rattled niece.

"All right, I'll try; it's about time I contributed more for this family anyway." Seeing her with more confidence in herself put a smile on her Gallade's face. "Shall we, Steven?"

"Gallade," Steven nodded.

"Just make sure everyone's safe and bring Troy up to speed, okay?"

"I will," Alexa nodded just before Steven disappeared in the blink of an eye with Naomi. Alexa then sighed with shaky relief, but the sudden tranquillity of their new environment felt strange to her, Keith and Keenan; the Pokémon began to feel concerned about them.

"...well, now what do we do?" Ryder asked, carefully breaking the tension.

"We need to get all of you looked at, for starters," Alexa said quickly. Ryder nodded as he, Jollie and Layla followed Alexa to the reception desk, where, after returning all of her Pokémon back into their respective Poké Balls, she handed her entire party over to the nurse Naomi called to earlier. With her Pokémon in safe hands, she smiled for a fleeting moment as she turned away from the desk, only to see Keith and Keenan handing over their Pokémon to different nurses and scattering to different parts of the Pokémon Centre; Keith made his way into the emergency room Robbie was taken to, while Keenan headed down the corridor on the other side of the building – both of them looked incredibly shaken up from the ordeal they had just endured. Alexa looked between the two of them, looking incredibly lost as to what to do now.

Carter roared in frustration with each swing of his two main tentacles, both glowing in bright magenta light, as he tried and constantly failed to land a Night Slash attack on Annabelle, who dodged each and every strike. Huey was engaged in a fight against Tristan, but the Farfetch'd seemed to be little match for the more limber Delcatty as Huey landed more slashing attacks on Tristan than the other way around. Silvia barely managed to dodge David's ramming attack as he darted down from the heavens; the Salamence, luckily, managed to land on his feet and quickly struck the Beautifly with a slam from his iron-coated tail. Dolores released a chilling beam of ice at Rena, who, at the exact same time, released a string of concentrated electricity from the tiny lump of a horn on her head; both beams struck one another and began to clash, neither one moving an inch towards their targets. Hyacinth absorbed sunlight particles into the very centre of the large flower on her head as she glimmered in a sparkling white light that healed what injuries she had; after healing herself completely, she unleashed her barrage of sludge balls at Laddy – the Aipom dodged each and every Sludge Bomb, leapt towards her and swung his hand-tail, clenched into a fist and glowing in a white light, against the side of the Vileplume's head. However, the punch was hardly enough to even leave a bruise on the poisonous Flower Pokémon, who merely smirked and sniggered at the Aipom's "futile" Mega Punch attack. Adelina watched her remaining Pokémon enduring the onslaught against them with pride; as far as she was concerned, they were winning the war.

"Laddy, get back here!" Harvey called. With no arguments, Laddy ran away from the Vileplume and ran up Harvey's body to resume his position on his shoulder. Harvey petted his tired Aipom. "You did great, buddy."

"Aipom...!" Laddy panted in response.

"I think I know how Alexa felt now," Hailey said quietly as she watched her Altaria firing a large beam of concentrated sunlight from her beak after the particles were absorbed into her antennae.

"Let's hope history doesn't repeat itself for us," Colin said wishfully as he watched his Salamence evading a wave of paralysing spores Silvia released from her wings.

"Tristan, return!" Hayden said as he held the Poké Ball towards his Farfetch'd; Tristan was returned to its sanctuary moments before a faint Shadow Claw could finish the Farfetch'd off.

"Aw, why did you have to do that?! You would have seen how Huey can hit a Normal type Pokémon with a Ghost type attack," Adelina complained playfully.

"I know how a Delcatty can achieve that and I don't give two fucks!" Hayden said angrily. "Not after what you've done to our sons and daughters!"

"Urgh, I'm getting so sick of your familial loyalty," Adelina groaned in disgust as Annabelle and David were returned to their Poké Balls.

"And I'm getting sick of your uppity attitude!" Hailey said meanly. Dolores and Rena's Ice Beam and Thunderbolt clash ended in a small explosion that caused both attacks to cancel each other out; the tired Dragonite was swiftly returned to the safety of her Poké Ball.

"We ALL are," Harvey added in agreement as he took a different Poké Ball in each hand; one was mostly green and the other was black and yellow with a red V on top of it, but both were in a Ball Capsule with a different Seal on top of them. "Frankie, Jacob, your turn!" he called as he opened both Poké Balls in his palms; from the capsule releasing the burst of red, blue, yellow and white confetti came a Gengar wearing mirrored sunglasses and a cocky grin, while a Dustox without red circles on his wings emerged from the capsule that released him with a ring of small yellow stars circling him. Hayden took another Poké Ball from his belt-bag and held it in front of him.

"Michaela, we need you!" he called as he opened the red and white Poké Ball without throwing it; the red-spined Sandslash leapt out of the giant blue star that escaped the Poké Ball.

"Sand-slash!"

"Now for a REAL Delcatty to take the stage," Colin grinned as he tossed his blue and black Moon Ball into the air; it opened in mid-air, releasing Charlotte from a cloud of ruby red hearts. Huey watched the lady Delcatty landing softly just in front of him, the bell on her collar jingling slightly as she landed, almost in awe.

"Reow~!" Charlotte purred.

"Oh, please...she can't hold a Litwick to my darling Delcatty!" Adelina said boastfully. Huey blinked at Charlotte as he began to admire the playful smirk on her face; he felt inclined to disagree with Adelina.

"Except Normal types can't touch Ghost types," Hailey said cheekily as she took hold of a blue and yellow Poké Ball in her hand. "C'mon out, Dexter!" she exclaimed as she opened the Quick Ball in her palm. The Jolteon sprang out of the Poké Ball from a blue lightning bolt and snarled violently at the Malamar. Lily took a Dusk Ball from her belt bag and held it in front of her.

"Roberta, I choose you!" she stated firmly as the Nidoqueen appeared from the small burst of purple flower petals. Harvey looked at the Nidoqueen in astonishment before giving Lily a huge grin.

"Pokémon number six! And here I thought you were fine with just five!" he said teasingly.

"Y-Yes, well..."

"We can worry about THAT later as well!" Hayden snapped suddenly. "We need to focus! Michaela, Fury Swipes attack!"

"Sandslash!" Michaela dashed towards the distracted Huey with both claws at the ready.

"Roberta, use—uh...what attacks do you know again?" Lily asked in bafflement. Adelina suddenly burst into hysterical laughter, offending Hayden in particular.

"Oh my days, you don't even know what attacks your Nidoqueen has?! You're worse than Alexa, and she was completely unprepared when we first battled!" Angered in her own right, Roberta roared violently, leapt towards Hyacinth and spun around like a drill with her hands clasped together above her head. Hyacinth attempted to deflect Roberta's Drill Run attack with a spiral of pink petals that danced around her before darting towards Roberta; however, the Nidoqueen effortlessly broke through the petals and landed her attack on Hyacinth, leaving a slightly bleeding laceration on the Vileplume's belly.

"I'm sorry, what were you saying?" Lily asked, attempting to sound smug. Adelina quickly lost her patience for the umpteenth time in one sitting.

"Okay, you're DEFINITELY worse than Alexa at this point...Silvia, do something!"

"Beautifly!" Silvia flew straight into Jacob with streams of white light enveloping her as she headed straight towards Lily. Hayden moved in front of Lily protectively, but Steven jumped over the couple and slammed a frozen fist down onto the Beautifly's back, which not only halted her Aerial Ace attack, but encased Silvia in a giant block of ice!

"Uh! Silvia!" Adelina gasped in horror. Harvey, Hayden, Hailey, Colin and Lily looked behind them and saw Naomi making her way to the group.

"Are we in time?"

"Yes, thank you so much!" Lily said gratefully. Hayden smiled as he sighed with relief; truth be told, he didn't want to suffer another injury at the hands of a Pokémon without such a body part, but he'd rather that than his wife getting hurt on his watch. However, he nodded at Naomi as he shared Lily's gratitude all the same.

"I thought you were taking the kids to a Pokémon Centre?" Harvey wondered.

"I did, but you didn't say I had to stay there," Naomi teased.

"She's got you there," Hailey chuckled. Harvey sighed as he smiled warmly.

"Thanks for coming back."

"Yeah, we're gonna need all the help we can get," Colin agreed.

"Actually, Alexa asked me to come back," Naomi said humbly. Just hearing Alexa's name was enough for Adelina to develop a look of primal rage that sent chills down even Carter's spine. "And I want to help in any way I can."

"We appreciate it, Naomi," Hayden said kindly.

"I sure as hell don't," Adelina said nastily. The adults returned their attention and caution towards Adelina; they saw that she was at breaking point – if the anger she felt had any form of visible representation, it would be a deep black aura burning violently all over her entire body. "Even when she's absent, that fucking whore's annoying me to no fucking end...! When I'm done with all of you, taking care of your broods will be a VERY simple task – starting with that bitch Alexa and that meddling brother of hers!"

"I don't think so!" Hayden roared viciously. "You've tormented my son and daughter ENOUGH! I'm not going to let you hurt them – or ANY of our children – any more than you already have! NONE of us are!" Adelina retained her evil glare, but grew a smile that resembled an odd mixture of demonic and maniacal.

"I'd love to see you try! Especially against a Pokémon like my sweet little Carter!" she exclaimed proudly. "All right, my little dumplings, give them EVERYTHING YOU HAVE!" The Malamar looked back at his master with slight concern as he and his comrades showed differing signs...of exhaustion.

 _To be continued..._


	55. Chapter 55

**Chapter Fifty Four – Hurricane Adelina pt V**

Alexa slowly made her way inside Xavier's hospital recovery room, where he, along with Troy, Michael and Perri, watched her with a mutual concern that only intensified as they noticed how exhausted she looked; her movements were slightly sluggish and her eyes appeared to be sore from the tears that finally escaped them in Entree Forest. However, it was the fact that Alexa entered the room on her own that concerned Troy the most as he was the first to approach her carefully.

"Alexa, what happened? A-Are you all right?"

"Y-Yeah, I..." Alexa wiped her eyes in a vain attempt to relieve their irritation. "I-I'm just a little tired..."

"A little? Girl, you're almost at the point of needing one of these beds!" Xavier said worriedly, Michael nodding in agreement with his son.

"...m-maybe..."

"Zorr-ooor? Zorror?" Alexa gave Perri a gentle smile.

"Keith and Keenan are fine..." However, Alexa's smile died quickly. "Physically speaking, anyway..."

"Nine?" Alexa looked away from her concerned audience, almost in shame.

"Alexa?"

"We...Keith and I ended up having to battle Adelina after all..." Xavier huffed a nervous chuckle.

"Sorry...I must be hearing things; you didn't just say you and Keith battled Adelina?" A nod from Alexa only served to make the hospitalised Zoroark sick to his stomach. "...I'm...not even sure what part of that statement is more alarming; the fact that you battled Adelina or the fact that Keith had to battle her alongside you."

"...neither compare to the fact that Adelina held Keenan hostage..."

"What?!" Troy was livid, but his expression was mostly that of terror. "How?!" Alexa was incredibly hesitant to answer.

"...the J word...she had him ensnared in her tentacles when Pteros and I got there...just in time to stop her from capturing Ava..." A faint glimmer of dark aura flickered all over Xavier's body as the younger Zoroark snarled viciously.

"Is there no end to her lack of moral decency?!"

"Zorr, zorrr...!" Perri said delicately, attempting to calm Xavier's anger. Alexa heaved a heavy sigh that only served to worry Troy further.

"We ended up saving him just before our parents arrived," she explained further. "...now they, Aunt Hailey and Uncle Colin are at war with Adelina... That sounds harsh, but..." Alexa gave Xavier a concerned look that carried a hint of guilt behind it, worrying the Zoroark. "It wouldn't be an exaggeration either..."

"But are you all right? And Keith and Keenan? Are all of you all right?" Troy asked worriedly. Alexa held onto her arms for a sense of security that wasn't even there for her when she needed it.

"I...I don't know how to answer that," she said shakily. "I mean...I've only been back for a whole two minutes or so; I'm still getting used to the calmer environment here..."

"Things were that bad down there?" Xavier wondered.

"I feel like all of my emotions were put into a bottle that ended up rolling down Jagged Pass," Alexa replied glumly. "But...on top of that, I feel bad for Keith and Keenan..."

"How come?" Troy asked anxiously.

"Well...I asked – begged, practically – Keith to help me battle Adelina, even though Robbie's now being treated for a broken leg among other injuries," Alexa began, her guilt dominating her. "...and Keenan because of the previously mentioned hostage situation he was in..."

"Holy Muk...I-I'm surprised you were able to get through that situation unharmed!" Troy said in shock. Alexa, however, sighed; she wasn't so sure that anybody got through the battle unharmed – so many Pokémon got hurt and she saw how Keenan struggled to breathe.

"...I...I don't think we did...Adelina had all but one of her Pokémon try to attack me before our parents arrived..."

"Oh, that fu-"

"In any case," Alexa said quickly, cutting off Xavier's profanity before it could escape his muzzle. "I should find Keenan..."

"Do you know where he is?" Troy asked gently.

"He's probably in the lavatories washing his face," Alexa guessed. "He's...he's really upset...and probably feels bad about the Pokémon getting hurt 'because' of him..."

"Sounds like something you'd worry about," Xavier said carefully.

"That just means I know how he feels...and what he's going through..." Troy smiled at Alexa kindly as he placed a hand on her cheek, prompting her to face him in confusion.

"When you're done with him, send Keenan my way; I'll look after him while you talk to Keith." Alexa gently took hold of the hand placed on her cheek and slowly pulled it away.

"Thanks, Troy," she said with a warm smile. "I know Keith will need as much attention as Keenan..."

"Too bad there's only one you, huh?" Xavier asked with a weak smile.

"...Keith probably needs space right now, though; I saw him head into the ER where Robbie was taken to..."

"But are you sure you don't need to rest a little bit first?" Xavier asked with concern.

"I'll take a few moments before I speak to Keenan, but...I want to talk to them myself before our parents are done with their war..."

"Good luck," Troy said encouragingly. Alexa nodded at him, and then at Xavier and his parents, before she turned to make her way out of the room. "Alexa!"

"Hm?" Alexa looked back at Troy curiously as he called out to her.

"I'm sorry for not spending as much time with you as I'd hoped." Alexa gave him a sweet smile.

"It's okay; I'm just happy you were there for me – and Keith to boot. Thank you, Troy."

"Don't mention it," Troy said with a joyful smile. Alexa briefly matched his grin as she left the room, closing the door behind her quietly. Xavier leaned back on the bed and breathed a more relaxed sigh.

"At least she's safe..." Perri nodded in agreement.

"Me, too," Troy said in corroboration. "But..."

Dolores flung herself at Roberta just as the Nidoqueen evaded an attack from Silvia, binding her arms behind her and forcing the Drill Pokémon onto her knees. Dolores smirked as Roberta briefly struggled to free her arms, but Roberta, too, smirked as she slyly tilted her head up to point her horn directly upwards. Shortly afterwards, a large lightning bolt struck down on top of Dolores and Roberta; the Jellicent screamed in agony as the electricity coursed through and all over her entire body, while Roberta felt absolutely no pain from her electrifying attack. As soon as the attack ended, Dolores released her grip on Roberta, who swiftly smacked the Jellicent away from her with her thick tail and huffed disapprovingly at her.

Huey lunged at Charlotte with his claws enveloped in a faint purple shadow and slashed the rival Delcatty's face, leaving one single scar down the side of her face and two other ones between the back of her ear and the base of her neck. Huey stared at the wounded Delcatty in shock before he suddenly felt himself blushing. Charlotte felt her cheek with her paw as she looked at her attacker, only to feel disturbed as she saw him staring lovingly at her.

"Oh, great!" Colin smiled. "That's one Pokémon incapacitated for a while!" Charlotte didn't share her Trainer's enthusiasm, especially when she looked at her paw; she saw her blood staining her paw pads.

"But that WAS a Shadow Claw that attacked her, wasn't it?" Hailey wondered as she watched Dexter unleashing a shower of sharp needles to negate Hyacinth's Sludge Bomb barrage.

"Yeah, there's no mistake about that," Colin nodded.

"So that would make Huey's-"

"He has CUTE CHARM!" Adelina insisted adamantly. "He just happens to be able to attack Normal types with his Shadow Claw, that's all!"

"Can he also attack Ghost types with a normal Slash attack?" Naomi asked curiously.

"You shut up right now!" Adelina shrieked demandingly. It was clear to everyone, including her Pokémon, that Adelina's patience was wearing dangerously thin. "Carter, grab Silvia before someone steps on her and smashes her to death!" Despite the morbid imagery of his comrade meeting such a demise and her heartless delivery of the demand, the Malamar complied with his master's instruction and zoomed across the battle field to retrieve the frozen Butterfly Pokémon and return her to Adelina, who promptly sprayed the contents of a yellow spray bottle onto the ice imprisoning Silvia; the ice swiftly melted, freeing the fatigued Beautifly inside. "There, that's better."

"Beauuuutiflyyy..."

"Vilepluuuuuume," Hyacinth relaxed as she began to absorb sunlight through her flower, but, before she could use the sunlight to heal her wounds, Michaela crashed into her with a Rollout attack.

"Wrong target, Michaela!" Hayden called to the Sandslash.

"Does it even matter at this point?" Harvey asked half-seriously. "Anything goes, pretty much..."

"Personally, I don't want to make any mistakes," Hayden grumbled. "Like attacking a Normal type Pokémon with a Shadow Claw attack, for instance," he added, raising an eyebrow at Adelina, who stood up as soon as her Beautifly regained her composure and took flight once more.

"I sincerely hope you're stocked up on healing supplies, Hayden," Adelina said with a mocking smirk. "That was a mistake Alexa made when we fought outside Mistralton City. Speaking of mistakes...Hyacinth, Petal Dance!"

"Vilepluuuuuuume!" Hyacinth relaxed as she spun around, releasing a flurry of pink petals from the flower on her head, all of which spiralled away from her and attacked everything around her; while Carter and Jacob were caught in the Petal Dance, the attack did strike its intended target as the Sandslash yelled in agony as the petals sliced across her body, releasing a small spray of blood with each new laceration.

"Slah!" Eventually, Michaela fell to the ground in defeat. Hayden snarled at Adelina as he recalled his wounded Sandslash back into her Poké Ball.

"If she had no medical supplies, then it means she had no intention to battle anyone, let alone you!"

"Oh, come ON, darling; I seldom intend to battle, yet I'm constantly stocked on supplies!" Adelina said tauntingly.

"Yeah, what makes you think we'll trust you after everything you've done to this family?!" Hailey asked interrogatively. Hayden took another Poké Ball from his pack; as with Michaela's, it was in a Ball Capsule, but it had a single Seal of a white puff of smoke on the top.

"You're not going to get away with any of it! Malik, you're up!" Hayden yelled as he tossed the Poké Ball into the air. The Poké Ball opened and bounced back into Hayden's hand; meanwhile, the Mismagius emerged from the white cloud released from his Poké Ball and tidied the glasses over his red and yellow eyes.

"Mis-ma-gius."

"My, my, my...such a dashing Pokémon you have there, Hayden," Adelina smirked. "It'd be such a shame if he were to taste Huey's Shadow Claw!"

"Um...Cute Charm," Colin said bluntly as he pointed at the infatuated Prim Pokémon.

"Oh...right..."

"Malik, use Shadow Ball on the Jellicent!" Hayden shouted.

"MAGIUS!" Malik complied as he aimed his forming sphere of deep purple energy at the fatigued Jellicent.

"Adelina, there's something I want to know," Lily said calmly as Roberta narrowly evaded Silvia's Aerial Ace attack, which, in actuality, was intended for Jacob; the Dustox was more than prepared for the attack, however, and produced a protective wall of translucent green light from his antennae just in time for Silvia to crash into it.

"Oh? And what might that be?" Adelina asked resentfully.

"Why do you hate Alexa so much?" Lily asked straightforwardly. "She's done nothing to you – none of us have done anything to you, as a matter of fact!"

"Hey, yeah, she's right! What IS your problem with my family anyway?!" Hailey asked demandingly.

"I see little point in divulging you with my response to that; after all, you won't be my problem for much longer," Adelina grinned sinisterly. Naomi returned Steven back into his Poké Ball and immediately sent out her Flareon to take his place.

"That won't solve a thing," Naomi said wisely. "If you don't talk about your problems, they'll never be addressed and consequently remain unfixed."

"I AM addressing the problem and it WILL be fixed!" Adelina yelled angrily, stomping her foot. "Carter, Night Slash on ANYTHING you can find!"

"Mala-MAR!" Carter zoomed towards his nearest target with his tentacles glowing in a vivid violet light. Frankie looked over at the oncoming Malamar and grinned as he prepared to counter-attack.

"Jason, Quick Attack!" Naomi cried. With blinding speed, the Flareon zoomed in between the Gengar and the Malamar, both equally alarmed to see the Flareon in the first place, and tackled into Carter's chest. However, Carter sought the opportunity to carry out his Night Slash attack anyway and slammed his glowing tentacle down on Jason's back; the Flareon cried in overwhelming pain as the tentacle literally dug into his flesh, horrifying Naomi in particular.

"FLAAAAAAAAAAARE!"

"JASON!" Harvey gently held onto Naomi as she attempted to hurry to her Flareon's aid, but glared savagely at Adelina.

"Are you seriously intent on murder now?!" he asked furiously as Naomi shakily returned her mortally wounded Flareon back into his Poké Ball. "Frankie, Dazzling Gleam!"

"Gen..." Frankie lowered his mirrored sunglasses to reveal his ivory white eyes to his target. "Gen-GAR!" The Gengar quickly pulled his sunglasses from his face as his eyes emitted a blinding flash that was so powerful it caused Carter to topple and fall onto his back; Frankie replaced his sunglasses to their original position over his eyes as Carter struggled to stand back up.

"Harvey, I-I'm so sorry, I-I didn't-"

"It's not your fault, angel," Harvey said to Naomi kindly. "How can you be held accountable for what the other Trainer makes their Pokémon do?" Naomi nodded as she timidly took a different Poké Ball from her pocket; it was a pure white and red Poké Ball.

"True enough... Miranda, y-you're up next, I guess..." she said shakily as she opened the Poké Ball. The white light it released soon formed into that of a Klefki without a single key to its name.

"Klef-ki!" Miranda sang merrily.

"I have had it up to HERE with your persistence!" Adelina shouted nastily just as Jacob fired an electrified spider web at Silvia, Dexter tackled into Hyacinth with blinding speed and Charlotte yelled at Huey with such volume that the resulting shockwaves crashed into the rival Delcatty. However, Charlotte's use of Hyper Voice meant nobody actually heard what Adelina said to them. "Carter, take everyone and get them!" she shrieked. Carter finally returned to his feet and looked back at Adelina hesitantly before his eyes briefly flashed white; all of a sudden, Dexter, Charlotte, Frankie, Jacob, Roberta, Malik and Miranda relaxed stance as their eyes became pale and soulless. All seven Pokémon faced their Trainers with the same soulless look, but none of the adults were hindered; in fact, as soon as all seven manipulated Pokémon lunged towards them with the intent to maim, they were simply returned to their Poké Balls without a second thought! Adelina was horrified at how her plan was foiled so quickly and so effortlessly and scowled viciously at them. "You fucking pieces of shit...!"

"Hello, Pot, my name is Kettle; you're black," Harvey said rudely as he, along with the other five adults, took out one more Poké Ball, each with their own Ball Capsule and Seal, and released their Pokémon from within; Tidus emerged from a burst of blue flames, Chelsea leapt from a shower of pink flower petals, Vergil slithered from an explosion of yellow flower petals, Josh leapt from a cluster of small blue bubbles, Colin's Samurott slashed his way out of a larger blue bubble and Steven reappeared from a ring of multi-coloured stars.

"Poooooooooom, Aipom-ai-POM!" Laddy said tauntingly.

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't have Carter make you hit yourself with a Mega Punch, you stupid monkey!"

"Because your Pokémon are getting tired," Colin said observantly as he took note of how fatigued Adelina's Pokémon were becoming; they were panting rather heavily and some of them were beginning to sweat.

"The battle will end, Adelina, if only because your Pokémon succumb to their exhaustion!" Hailey said clearly.

"My Pokémon are NOT exhausted!" Adelina yelled violently as she released her wounded Gothitelle from her Poké Ball. Francesca continued to hold her broken arm and appear very sorry for herself, which alarmed the Starter Pokémon and their Trainers.

"Wh...you're seriously sending a Pokémon with a broken arm to battle!?" Hailey asked with disgust.

"If your Gothitelle isn't a clear case in point that your Pokémon are exhausted, then I don't know what is!" Harvey yelled with the same level of disgust as his sister. Adelina clenched both of her fists and gritted her teeth as she glared demonically at her opposition.

"I don't CARE." Her tone matched how sinister she looked. "You WILL lose to me and I WILL go after your offspring afterwards and THAT is the end of it. And I will make sure neither Alexa nor her brother will pester ANYONE for the rest of their pathetic little lives...!" Hayden was dangerously close to breaking point; he gave Adelina a look that was so savage it could make even a Tyranitar quiver in fear.

"You WON'T go after the kids because WE'RE still able to fight you and there's NO WAY that we'll let you hurt our babies!" Hailey screeched furiously. Hayden and Harvey nodded in complete agreement; in comparison, Harvey appeared to be the most placid of the siblings, though he still harboured a violent look of anger in his eyes. "This battle WILL be won either by our very first partners – THAT is a promise!"

 _To be continued..._


	56. Chapter 56

**Chapter Fifty Five – Hurricane Adelina pt VI**

Alexa stood over a wash basin in the Pokémon Centre's ladies' lavatories as she caught some of the ice cold water pouring from the faucet in her cupped palms and splashed it over her face. The faucet turned off by itself as Alexa began to breathe deeply and look at her reflection in the mirror directly in front of her; she sighed despondently as she saw the look of fatigue that was already pointed out to her. She stared at herself in the mirror as she reflected on the torment she was lucky to have escaped from as bits and pieces of the ordeal played in her mind; she remembered seeing her brother in the grasp of Adelina's Jellicent, her Buneary resorting to knocking out her own teammate, Keith attempting to persuade his Pichu to continue battling despite her inexperience...Adelina's Pokémon attempting to attack her before her father's Farfetch'd saved her from the onslaught her Pokémon couldn't halt. She would have punched the mirror in frustration if another girl hadn't entered the lavatories with her Feraligatr. Alexa casually splashed her face once more, taking care not to knock her unequipped Gracidea flower hairclip into the basin, as the girl walked over to the basin right next to her and began to tighten one of the two pigtails on the side of her head. As the girl turned to commune with her Feraligatr, Alexa couldn't help but notice a third ponytail at the back of her head and raised an eyebrow; her hair's quirkier than Aunt Hailey's, Alexa thought to herself. Regardless, as the girl took the Feraligatr's glasses and cleaned them with the bottom of her red parka, Alexa chose to walk away from her basin and carry on with her own business. The Feraligatr saw Alexa leaving and drew the forgotten hairclip to her Trainer's attention; the chestnut-haired girl quickly took the accessory and hurried out of the lavatories in pursuit of Alexa.

Leaving the ladies' toilets, the girl looked around for Alexa, only to find her leaning against the wall next to the gents'; she stared at her feet as she appeared to be waiting for something – or someone.

"Excuse me?"

"Hm?" Alexa looked over at the girl standing in front of her with an awkward smile on her face.

"Is this yours?" she asked as she held the Gracidea hairclip in front of Alexa. Alexa groaned quietly as she accepted her clip from the kind girl, giving her a nervous smile.

"Yes, it is; thank you," she said graciously as she returned the clip to its original position on the right hand side of her head. "The last thing I want to do is lose this..." The Feraligatr left the ladies' toilets and caught up with her Trainer.

"Well, I'm glad you got it back," the girl said cheerfully.

"Thank you for returning it to me."

"You're welcome," the girl said courteously as she began to walk down the corridor with her Feraligatr following closely. Alexa lightly touched her clip and smiled warmly until the door to the gents' opened as an equally fatigued Keenan slowly made his way out into the hallway; he didn't seem to notice Alexa's presence until she spoke up.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Startled, Keenan spun around and looked up at his sister; his alarm quickly faded as his guilt took over.

"Hi, Alex..." Alexa's concern grew when he kept his gaze away from her.

"Come on, we need to talk about this..." Keenan just silently followed Alexa as she led him away from the corridor.

Alexa and Keenan passed the reception desk, passing the same girl and Feraligatr Alexa had encountered in the ladies' lavatories, as they walked over to the barren waiting area of the Pokémon Centre's main lobby; none of the numerous seats in the area were occupied and the area as a whole appeared untouched as the supply of magazines were still neatly piled on the table in the corner of the room. Alexa and Keenan sat on the plush faux leather sofa in the corner, near the table of magazines, as they began to talk.

"Talk to me."

"It's just..." Keenan kept his eyes away from Alexa and focused on his lap, as if in shame. "I-I feel like everything's all my fault..."

"No, it isn't," Alexa said gently, despite her own worries starting to get the better of her. "At the very least, I don't see it that way."

"A-And then there's...there's...!" Keenan clenched his jeans as he choked back a sob. Alexa watched him fighting against his tears with grave concern, knowing full well what exactly was upsetting him.

"Did she hurt you?" she asked carefully. Keenan rolled up his sleeve, taking care to prevent it from being damaged by his broken Xtransceiver, and looked at his arm; both he and Alexa saw a faint pink mark that nearly resembled a Jellicent's tentacle. Seeing the mark left Alexa both infuriated that he ended up getting hurt after all, but relieved to know the extent of his injury wasn't as bad as it could have been. "Is it tender?"

"N-Not really, I-I can handle it," Keenan said shakily as he pulled his sleeve down. "But...I-I feel so bad...!"

"Keenan-"

"Robbie's got a broken leg and it's all my fault...!" Keenan said remorsefully as he began to cry. Alexa pulled him into a comforting cuddle and held onto him dotingly; Keenan clung to the front of her neon green T-shirt as he wept.

"I know exactly what you're going through..." Keenan sniffed as he looked up at Alexa curiously. "Ryder went through a lot just to get to me on Mt Coronet...and Keith got hurt for my sake once...then there's Xavier..." Keenan felt Alexa's grip on him loosening slightly. "But...none of them regret it...and I'm sure Robbie doesn't regret trying to help you either."

"Y-You think so...?"

"I got badly hurt trying to save Keith once; I was reckless in my approach and I ended up failing the attempt...if Robbie's attempt to save you was as reckless as my attempt to save Keith, then he's going to regret his failure above the fact that he tried."

"...n-nobody told Robbie to attack...Iara and Ava didn't want him to either..." Alexa huffed a silent sigh.

"My point is...there's no point in blaming yourself for what happened to you." Keenan somehow felt worse and hid his face in his sister's chest as he began to sob again.

"B-But I...h-how can I not...?! It-it's because of me Mum and Dad are battling A-Adelina right now...!" Alexa tightened her grip on Keenan again as she looked down at him sympathetically.

"They have their own reasons for fighting her...but you're not why they're at war."

"It-it feels like it," Keenan wept. Alexa watched him empathetically.

"I know...I felt like I was the reason our family was falling apart because of my row with Dad... But you and I...we were just victims of circumstance..."

"W-What does that mean...?"

"It means the situations we were in were a result of something that was out of our control," Alexa explained as she began to stroke the back of Keenan's head in hopes of settling his anxiety and despair. "Nobody was to know that Adelina would assault you like she had until it was too late to prevent it from happening, much like how I had no inkling that she'd confront me on Route 7... Do you understand?"

"Y-Yeah," Keenan sniffled.

"It's not your fault," Alexa said gently with a caring smile on her face. "Whether it's the day Xavier got hurt or anything that's just taken place in Entree Forest, none of it is your fault; Xavier doesn't think so, I definitely don't think so and I'm certain our parents, aunts and uncles are of the same opinion." Keenan looked up at Alexa in wonderment before he frowned, concerning her.

"Even so...I should have listened to you about not showing you that photo..." Though she retained her smile, Alexa shook her head slowly.

"What's done is done; the best thing we can do is let it go and move on – like Dad said to me this morning, it'll only eat away at you if you keep dwelling on it," Alexa said wisely. "I think it's best if we listen to him, don't you?" Keenan smiled timidly at her.

"Y-Yeah..."

"Besides...I already said you and I are cool when it comes to that stupid newspaper clipping," Alexa winked. "Nothing else about it needs to be said." Keenan's smile grew brighter.

"Thanks, Alex...!" Alexa smiled kindly as she lightly touched foreheads with Keenan.

"You're my brother...and I've loved you since the day you were born; that's never going to change..."

"I love you, too... I'm...I'm sorry for sounding so gloomy..." Alexa faced Keenan directly, still holding her loving smile.

"After what you've just escaped from, nobody can blame you for being so rattled."

"But...thanks for making me feel better," Keenan said happily.

"Absolutely," Alexa said cheerfully before pecking a soft kiss on her brother's forehead. "Troy's been worried about you since the start of the whole thing, though."

"Think I should talk to him?"

"In a bit; wanna come with me to the coffee shop first? I still need to talk to Keith and maybe getting some cocoa for him and I will help the both of us; maybe Troy could do with one as well and you can choose what you want for yourself." Keenan smiled gratefully at Alexa's generosity.

"Maybe we can get a Poké Puff platter for Xavier and his parents as well?"

"Only if the coffee shop actually sells such a thing; it's a small establishment in comparison to Castelite's, being a Pokémon Centre coffee shop and all," Alexa chuckled as she and Keenan stood up from the sofa. "But that's still a great idea; it'll make Xavier feel better at least."

"What about the other Pokémon?" Keenan wondered as he followed Alexa across the lobby.

"Let them get treated first, silly! But...if their treatment gets finished before I get to you, would you mind holding onto them with Troy?"

"Not at all!" Keenan said joyfully.

"Thanks, bro," Alexa said appreciatively as she gently ran her hand down the back of Keenan's head.

Francesca screamed in overwhelming agony as the reluctant Gallade sliced a blade of deep magenta energy protruding from his elbow across the Gothitelle's body; Steven winced as Francesca's blood splashed onto his face and torso as the attack knocked her backwards. Francesca lay unconscious on the grass, her blood starting to pool around her. Adelina snarled viciously as she begrudgingly recalled her Gothitelle to her Poké Ball.

"I'll deal with you later, princess," she said snidely as she placed the Poké Ball in her purse.

"Oh, that poor Gothitelle," Naomi said sympathetically.

"Gah-lade," Steven nodded as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"It's Adelina's own fault," Hailey said nastily as she watched Chelsea using her vines to block Silvia's Aerial Ace attack; surprisingly, Silvia couldn't break through the vines. "She should have known better than to force a Pokémon to fight when they have a broken arm."

"Clear case of Pokémon cruelty right there," Harvey added in agreement.

"B-But...look at her," Naomi said worriedly as she observed Adelina's demeanour; she appeared to be on the verge of losing what little patience she had left – her left eye twitched from time to time, unnerving Naomi. "She doesn't look so good..."

"She's self-absorbed, Naomi, not insane," Hailey said meanly as she looked at her old friend. However, the more she looked at Adelina, the sadder Hailey became. "...she's definitely not the Adelina I remember anymore..."

"ROH!" Edward toppled in place as Huey fled from the Samurott's seamitar to attack the remorseful Gallade with a blinding fury of bites, slashes and slaps. A near-demonic smirk reached Adelina's lips as Steven fell to the ground in defeat.

"See!? SEE!? My Pokémon still have mountains of energy left!" she cackled boastfully. However, she was oblivious to her Delcatty's heavy panting; Huey watched as Steven was returned to his Poké Ball.

"Sorry, Harvey..."

"Don't be; you tried your best," Harvey said gently as he gave her a kind smile. Naomi returned his smile, but it was short-lived as she watched Harvey observing Huey's sluggish sprint towards Edward. "But it doesn't look like Huey's mountain of energy's all that tall..."

"You don't say?" Hayden said sarcastically as he saw Tidus leaping into a ball and rolling away from Hyacinth's sludge ball barrage; the Typhlosion crashed into the befuddled Vileplume.

"No, I mean...that Play Rough wasn't as strong as it could be," Harvey said observantly. "That's either down to Huey's exhaustion or his ability being Normalize...or both."

"My Delcatty is NOT exhausted and he does NOT have that AWFUL ability!" Huey's ears drooped shamefully. "ALL OF YOU, keep going...!"

"Maaaaar...!" Carter seemed to complain about his order, but complied nonetheless as he tried to slash his purple-glowing tentacle across Josh's chest; the Swampert slapped the tentacle away with a fist encased in ice. "Mrrrrrr...!"

"Oh, for crying out loud...!" Hailey complained.

"Hang in there, Edward!" Colin yelled encouragingly. Edward nodded at his Trainer as he prepared to face his Delcatty opponent.

"REAAAAAAOW!" Huey leapt at Edward with both sets of claws ready to attack.

"SAMUROTT!" Edward lunged at Huey with his seamitar glimmering in a sapphire blue energy. In the exact same second, Huey slashed his claws across Edward's body and Edward swung his seamitar across Huey's as the two Pokémon passed one another. However, the two Pokémon fell to the ground, defeated by each other.

"URGH! Huey, baby!" Adelina screamed in horror. Colin sighed submissively as he returned his defeated Samurott to his Poké Ball. Adelina reluctantly followed suit as she recalled Huey back to his own Poké Ball.

"Dammit all, we're having a tough time against exhausted Pokémon," Harvey complained in anger. "Christ...guess Chick had a tougher time..."

"Yeah..." Hailey watched the remaining Pokémon as Vergil evaded Dolores's spray of blue flames and slashed his tail, enveloped in a vivid green glow, across her face. "Xavier's lucky to be alive..." Suddenly, Adelina began to chuckle, which quickly escalated to roaring laughter that attracted everyone's attention; the battle seemed to pause in light of Adelina's laughing.

"Xavier? That slut's Zoroark?! Is he really alive?!" Hayden felt incredibly offended at the label Adelina used for Alexa.

"Y-Yes, he is," Lily confirmed.

"No thanks to you!" Hailey added spitefully. Seeing Hayden trying to contain his anger gave Adelina an idea; she seemed to calm down a little, but still bore her demonic smirk.

"Do you want to know why I chose to confront Alexa to begin with?" Hailey raised an eyebrow.

"Y-"  
"No. No, we don't," Lily said suddenly as she saw the look of explosive anger in her husband's eyes.

"Aww, but it's such an enlightening story!" Adelina said tauntingly. "...well...it was for HER, at least..."

"What IS it with you and Alexa anyway?" Colin asked with a raised eyebrow.

"And why did you attack Keenan today?" Naomi wondered with concern.

"Because...they've been onto me from the very beginning..." Adelina said with a psychotic smile.

"Onto you?" Harvey questioned.

"Oh, right, I forgot; I haven't confirmed their suspicion yet," Adelina said to herself, suddenly putting on a brief look of innocence. "Guess I'd better clear that up then; the boy showed a photograph in the newspaper to his sister, who proceeded to remark that it 'reeks of sabotage', to use her exact terms..."

"But how did you-"

"Silvia's been keeping an eye on my competition lately," Adelina explained further. "Although...that was AFTER the Contest...that I accidentally cancelled." Hailey's eyes widened in horror as she looked at Adelina with a disgust that was mutually shared by her brothers.

"Y-You...?! But why...?!"

"Like I said, Hailey, I had no intention on cancelling the Contest," Adelina said quickly. "Regardless, Alexa called sabotage on the whole thing, so, naturally, I had to make sure she was silenced, lest she spoil my fun..." Watching Adelina saying such sinister words with a prideful smirk on her face disgusted her entire audience. "At first, I tried to buy it from her; I was going to divulge her little kidnapping secret to the lot of you if she didn't keep her nose clean..."

"So you didn't make that up?" Hailey asked worriedly.

"No, I didn't, darling; it came straight from the Ponyta's mouth – or, in her case, the Lucario's mind!" Adelina cackled; she seemed to get some sort of sick pleasure from her exposition. Hayden glared savagely at her, a look that was starting to be shared with his Typhlosion. "However, that didn't exactly work like I had expected it to," Adelina sighed. "So...I engaged her in a battle I had no intention of letting her escape from," she continued, her smirk becoming devilish once more. "And I mean that literally."

"What are you talking about?!" Harvey asked demandingly.

"I don't know what injuries that Zoroark of hers ended up with after Carter attacked him with Superpower...but..." Adelina's glare matched her grin, which intimidated everyone except Hayden and Tidus, who fought against her look with a vicious look of their own. "Let's just say...they weren't meant for HIM..."

Nothing else needed to be said; everyone understood the horrific implications behind Adelina's cryptic response. In their heads, they suddenly began to picture a malicious Malamar attacking Alexa with the deadly Superpower attack, Alexa crashing into whatever it was that caused Xavier's haematoma in the first place...and Alexa lying limp on the ground afterwards. The imagery alone was enough to make the adults sick to their stomachs, but it was what followed that almost made Naomi physically sick as she held one hand over her stomach and the other over her mouth; they all realised...there would have been absolutely no plausible way that Alexa would have survived such a brutal onslaught, especially from such a rigorously trained Pokémon. The thought of Alexa's would-have-been demise, however, left Hayden with a look of tormenting trauma as tears flowed freely from his eyes. He began to picture Alexa in his mind, though not as the deceased corpse Adelina wanted her to be...but as a much younger and innocent little girl. The imagery swiftly covered various aspects of Alexa's growth in fleeting flashes; Hayden managed to remember his beloved daughter as the four-year-old girl adoring her Shinx onesie, the six-year-old helping her one-year-old brother to walk to his father, the eleven-year-old who triumphantly returned from her first Pokémon League and the seventeen-year-old who reconciled with him and called him Daddy for the first time in under ten years all in less than five seconds. The final image in Hayden's head was of Alexa smiling at him serenely...with what almost looked like a ghostly image of her older self over her, giving him the exact same smile.

"...you..." Hayden clenched both of his fists so hard he felt his blunt fingernails digging into his palm. He began to shiver from containing far more emotions than he could handle all at once as he fought his failing battle to attain control over his feelings. "...y-you..."

"H-Hayden...?" Lily worriedly walked closer to him, only for Harvey to gently draw her away from Hayden as, as if on cue, he finally glared at the woman relishing his volatile state, tears streaming down his face, his eyes piercing into what little soul Adelina had and roaring in a loud erupting voice that was a perfect mixture of savage anger and agonising devastation.

"YOU TRIED TO KILL MY DAUGHTER?!" Suddenly, the flames at the back of Tidus's neck erupted in a tremendous burst of bright blue flames, startling the Pokémon around him, even Adelina's. "YOU TRIED TO KILL HER TWICE NOW?!"

"REEEEEEEEEEEEEEERGH!" Tidus roared in the exact same anger that caused Hayden's blood to boil violently. Chelsea and Vergil hastily backed away from the enraged Flame Pokémon while Josh stepped in front of them defensively.

"Oh; you heard that."

"My daughter has done NOTHING to you and you tried to TAKE HER AWAY FROM ME?!"

"Hayden, stop!" Lily cried, but her plea failed to reach him.

"Because of YOU, Alexa and I-...L-Lexie..." Hayden closed his eyes tightly, causing his dormant tears to fall from his eyes as he withheld his sobs; in doing so, however, he allowed his rage to dominate him as he glared at Adelina with his anger burning in his sapphire eyes. "YOU'RE GOING TO PAY FOR WHAT YOU'VE DONE TO HER!"

"RYYYYYYYYYHREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERGH!" Tidus roared with the same explosive fury as his flames intensified to the point where they almost engulfed him entirely and slammed both of his clenched paws on the grass beneath him. Even Adelina was in a mild panic as an explosion of molten hot blue flames was expelled from the enraged Typhlosion, hitting every Pokémon within its attacking range and burned away the grass in its wake. Hyacinth was immediately overwhelmed and defeated by the scorching hot fire, but she wasn't the only Pokémon to suffer Tidus's wrath; the force of the explosion knocked Silvia backwards, though she was fortuitous enough to avoid the fire itself, while Carter and Dolores suffered mild burns from the attack. Vergil and Chelsea hurriedly scurried away from the flames, but they ended up being protected by Josh, who was only slightly burned as the devastating explosion faded away by the time the embers reached the bulky Swampert; the flames that actually made contact with him were so few and far between that Josh hardly felt a thing from the burns he was left with. Tidus panted heavily as he collapsed onto his knees, completely exhausted from expelling so much energy in one uncontrolled burst of fury. Hayden, too, seemed to suffer from the same fatigue as he breathed deeply to recover from his own outburst. Lily was deeply concerned for Hayden, but all attention was drawn to Adelina as, after getting over her panic, began to laugh.

"I intend to make no such payment, darling. Dolores?"

"LIII!" With every ounce of strength she could muster, Dolores fired a torrential burst of water from her mouth, which struck the tired Typhlosion with its full force; unable to retaliate in any way, Tidus was overwhelmed by the full force of the Hydro Pump attack and was defeated instantaneously. Hayden watched Tidus landing on his back as remorse took hold over him.

"Ganium!" Angered, Chelsea began to absorb sunlight particles into the petals around her neck and eyed the arrogant Jellicent vengefully.

"Hayden?" Lily carefully approached Hayden with Harvey and Hailey as Tidus was returned to his Poké Ball. Nobody bothered to watch Chelsea firing her Solarbeam at Dolores, finally defeating the pink jellyfish Pokémon. "Honey...?"

"I...I-I just...saw red...!" Hayden said tearfully. "T-The thought of... ...I-I can't lose her, too...! ...not Lexie...!"

"Oh, please," Adelina said insensitively as she rolled her eyes in disgust. "You're just as pathetic as HER..." Through his tears, Hayden glared viciously at Adelina. "At least you're not begging me to let you go like she did...Silvia, get rid of that Meganium. Or the Serperior; whichever you get to first, I don't care."

"BEAUTIFLYYYYYY!" Silvia darted towards Chelsea with streaks of light engulfing her. Chelsea, however, formed a ball of pale brown energy in her gaping mouth and fired it at the oncoming Beautifly. To her horror, Silvia barely evaded the attack and struck the Meganium squarely on her forehead; Silvia flew away from the Herb Pokémon groggily as Chelsea toppled onto the burnt dirt beneath her, where she lay unconscious.

"Oh, dear..." Lily returned Chelsea to her Poké Ball without a second thought. After returning the Poké Ball to her pack, she redirected her focus to Hayden. "Hayden-"

"I'm sorry," Hayden sighed as his demeanour softened slightly. "I'm...I'm just...I'm angry and...and distraught...I-I don't know how much more of this I can take!" he said woefully. Harvey kept a worried eye on his younger brother, while Hailey grinned hopefully as she watched Vergil burning in a dark brown aura and boulders made from the same light collided with the Butterfly Pokémon, knocking her out of the air and crashing into the ground in defeat.

"It's okay, Hayden, it'll be over soon," she said gently. Adelina huffed; her Malamar was now the only Pokémon left to face two more...but she grinned sinisterly when she noticed that one of the enemy Pokémon was Hailey's.

 _To be continued..._


	57. Chapter 57

**Chapter Fifty Six – Hurricane Adelina pt VII**

The coffee shop barista thanked Alexa and Keenan for their custom courteously as the pair left the counter; Alexa held a handled cardboard coffee carrier that held two identical takeaway coffee cups of cocoa, while Keenan held the other coffee carrier in one hand and a cardboard cake carrier in the other. The siblings made their way out of the busy coffee shop, which had the custom of visitors, members of staff on breaks and even patients, with their purchases in hand.

"You sure you don't want me to carry something?" Alexa wondered as she looked at the two items in Keenan's hands.

"No, thanks, I'm okay," Keenan said kindly. "Besides, I've got the stuff for Troy and Xavier, remember?"

"I know, but I can at least lighten the load." Keenan simply shrugged.

"They're not that heavy." Once he and Alexa made a turn down one of the Pokémon Centre's quieter corridors, Keenan looked up at his sister curiously. "Hey, Alex?"

"Hm?"

"Keith told me you looked after him the night Mum and Dad met Roberta." Alexa felt warm and fuzzy as she was immediately reminded of the night in question; she remembered coddling Keith like a mother Kangaskhan, but what made her blush a little was the kiss that somehow happened afterwards – Keith was so gentle that recalling his touch made her heart melt. Keenan smiled when he saw how blissful she looked. "Would you agree with him?"

"I'd...meet him half way," Alexa began, rubbing the back of her neck. "I looked after him when he got upset, he kind of looked after me by treating me to breakfast and dropping me off outside Castelite."

"Does that mean the two of you are okay now?" Keenan asked. "I mean...the two of you were really happy yesterday it was almost impossible to remember that you had such a huge fight before we came to Unova in the first place." At the opposite end of the hallway, a raspberry-eyed girl with long dark chocolate hair wearing a lighter chocolate brown jumpsuit that almost resembled a swimsuit, long black gloves and boots with several pieces of gold bangles on her arms and over her knees turned the corner and proceeded to walk down the corridor with a disgruntled Gliscor with larger wings than normal riding on her back, looking around him cautiously as his Trainer walked along.

"I-I guess...?" Alexa said with slight uncertainty. "...I-I guess we are...I just need to talk to him about it..." Keenan frowned a little.

"As well as making him feel better about Robbie?"

"Yeah, I'm...I'll need quite a bit of time with him," Alexa nodded as she glanced down at the two cups of cocoa in her carrier. "I wonder if these will even last that long..."

"Maybe you should've bought large ones," Keenan suggested nervously.

"Nah, they'd probably get cold before-"

"HSSSSS!" The Gliscor hissed at Keenan and Alexa as his Trainer began to walk passed them; the sudden hiss alarmed both the siblings and the Gliscor's Trainer.

"Sorry, sorry!" the girl apologised quickly.

"Sorry!" Alexa chuckled nervously as the girl went on her way, quietly scolding 'Jericho' for hissing at 'random people'. Alexa and Keenan watched the Gliscor briefly glaring at the pair before returning to his unnecessary sentry duties. "At least he means well..."

"A-Anyway," Keenan began nervously as he and Alexa resumed their walk down the hallway. "You and Keith did work well together earlier."

"You think so?" Alexa asked as she faced Keenan in bafflement. "I kind of thought it was a bit of a disaster."

"Yeah; the way you took advantage of Ava's ability was pretty cool! Then there was when he was being protective over you...seriously, how can you say the two of you have problems anymore?" Alexa looked away from Keenan as she slightly blushed.

"I-I never said that..."

As they walked down another hallway, Alexa and Keenan saw Keith sitting by himself on one of the benches scattered across the corridor, elbows on his knees and forehead resting in his palms. Alexa and Keenan looked at one another worriedly before they nodded at one another; Keenan silently made his way down a different corridor while Alexa carefully walked over to Keith. She stood next to him nervously for a few seconds before she finally spoke up.

"Keith?" Keith turned his head and looked up at her; he dropped his arms and sat up properly before looking up at her directly – Alexa saw how torn he appeared to be and felt even more anxious for him.

"Hey, Alexa..."

"I-I, uh..." Alexa took one of the coffee cups from the carrier and offered it to Keith. "I got this for you; I thought you might need it. It-it's just a cocoa, nothing fancy..." Keith quietly accepted the beverage and held it in both hands, resting it on his lap. He nudged his head towards the empty spot on the bench next to him, giving Alexa silent clearance to sit next to him; she took the other cup out of the carrier as she complied with his signal and sat next to him. He sighed as he looked away from Alexa just as she looked at him with concern.

"...Robbie, he's... ...he's been taken to surgery." Alexa pitied him even more.

"Keith-"

"I gotta be honest, I'm...I'm scared." Alexa gently rested her hand comfortingly on his shoulder. Keith suddenly, yet softly, used one hand to hold onto hers; Alexa waited for a few seconds, but his hand held onto hers instead of pushing it off of his shoulder, like she partly expected it to.

"I...I can't apologise enough..." Keith sighed silently. "I-I know how you feel...and...if-if there's anything I can do for you, j-just tell me." Keith nodded understandingly.

"...thanks." Keith removed his hand from Alexa's as she removed hers from his shoulder. The pair sat on the bench in awkward silence, occasionally sipping from their coffee cups. After a few moments, the pair faced one another.

"I just wanted to-" Keith and Alexa halted mid-sentence as they realised they began to talk at the exact same time. They looked away from each other, feeling awkward all over again, for a few moments before they dared to face each other again.

"Thank you," Alexa said quietly before Keith could say anything. "...for...for everything you've done today..."

"I didn't do that much..."

"Your help meant a lot to me..."

"You were doing most of the battling..." Keith looked down at the cup of cocoa on his lap. "You had more Pokémon that could battle..."

"That doesn't mean Ava's contribution was meaningless...I wouldn't have worked around her ability if I thought that was the case..." Keith looked over at her again, still looking as despondent as before. "Her attacks got stronger as the battle progressed because of the advantages I took; she probably contributed more than you realise..." Keith sighed pessimistically, worrying Alexa further; she looked away from him, but shifted her eyes to look at him as she took another sip of her drink. She began to consider the possibility that she was making Keith feel worse, which made her feel very ashamed of herself.

Carter roared violently as he slammed his glowing tentacle down on Vergil's tail, glimmering in a grass green glow, as the Serperior swung it across him to block the Night Slash attack. With Carter distracted, Josh leapt over Vergil and slapped his frozen fist across the Malamar's cheek, knocking him away from the Regal Pokémon. As he struggled back onto his feet, Carter looked around at his fallen teammates as, one by one, Adelina begrudgingly recalled them back into their Poké Balls, despite her carrying a psychotic smile.

"Keep going, Carter; you're the strongest Pokémon on the team – you simply CAN'T lose!" Adelina instructed arrogantly. Carter glanced back at Josh and Vergil, who were decent enough to actually wait for him to regain his footing and a command from their Trainers before attacking him. Heavily fatigued and battered, Carter reluctantly faced his two opponents savagely. "That's the way, baby! You're not tired at all!"

"Mrr," Carter huffed nastily under his breath. Vergil and Josh exchanged looks of bewilderment.

"Now, use Flamethrower!"

"Mala-MAAAAAAAAR!" Carter inhaled as deeply as he could and exhaled a tremendously large breath of red hot flames.

"Joshie, Mirror Coat!"

"Swah!" Josh jumped in between Vergil and the Flamethrower attack as his body became completely coated in a reflective silver mirror-like shield.

"Vergil, Coil for a bit!" Harvey called. "Josh's got you covered!"

"Ser!" Vergil nodded as he curled up tightly behind the mirrored Swampert and relaxed. Carter's Flamethrower, meanwhile, struck Josh's entire being, but it bounced away from the Mud Fish Pokémon and was reflected back to the Pokémon that conjured it in the first place; seeing this bounce-back caused Adelina to grit her teeth in frustration.

"How dare you...!"

"Oh, like you didn't see THAT one coming!" Hailey complained. "You KNOW Joshie knows Mirror Coat, why are you acting like you never knew that?!"

"I mean, how dare you attack MY darling Carter like that?! What, with your...not losing to me!" After recovering from being struck by his own attack, Carter rolled his eyes. "You're supposed to lose to me, Hailey, not the other way around again!"

"Will you just tell us why you're so obsessed with defeating me, Adelina?! I mean, what is your problem?!" Hailey exclaimed.

"YOU!" Adelina screamed angrily. "YOU are my problem! Carter, honey, Superpower RIGHT NOW!"

"Mar," Carter sighed as his body burned in a deadly blue aura. He remained silent as he darted towards Josh.

"NOW, Vergil!"

"SER!" Vergil suddenly sprung up from his coil and wrapped his snake-like body all around Carter's body, resulting in the Malamar falling face first into the singed ground.

"OH, COME ON!" Adelina complained pompously. "Carter, don't just lie there, you piece of shit! DO SOMETHING!"

"Ma-la-mar," Carter grumbled, baffling Vergil and Josh even further. Josh scratched the back of his head in confusion as he looked back at Hailey.

"Swam-pert?"

"I dunno, Joshie...just...I dunno, standby for a spell?" Hailey shrugged. Though still puzzled, Josh complied with Hailey's questionable request and waited, watching Carter not even attempting to struggle out of Vergil's grip; the equally confused Serperior didn't even bother to tighten his grip on Carter either.

"CARTER! Do as I say or you'll be punished just like the others will be!" Adelina screeched nastily. "Get back up and spit a Flamethrower in that Serperior's ugly mug!"

"Mrrrrrr... Malamar..." Vergil was puzzled, but Carter suddenly looked up at the Serperior and, as per Adelina's uppity command, literally spat out a quick burst of fire from his beak squarely on Vergil's face. Josh began to panic.

"Josh, use Ice Punch again!"

"I DON'T THINK SO! Carter, DO IT!"

"Mrr," Carter sighed as his eyes flashed silver for a blinking moment. A recovering Vergil soon perked up and relaxed as his normally vivid orange eyes became lifeless and soulless. Just as Josh began to execute his Ice Punch attack, Vergil darted towards Josh, a sphere of bright green energy starting to form in his gaping mouth.

"JOSH, STOP!" Hailey cried. Josh literally halted in place; he stood perfectly still, icy fist held above his head, staring in terror at the possessed Serperior.

"Oh, for goodness' sake," Harvey grumbled as he quickly took Vergil's Poké Ball and recalled the Serperior before his Energy Ball was fully charged up. "That was cheap, Adelina; have Josh attack Vergil or Vergil attack Josh..."

"Nice save, Harvey," Colin praised.

"Oh, my gosh, this is getting too much," Naomi exasperated.

"Oh, don't worry your pretty little head; now it's down to me and Hailey...exactly what I was wanting..."

"You do realise you could have saved a lot of time, energy and grief by just asking Hailey for a battle directly, don't you?" Lily asked sternly. "Why waste time in doing any of the other things you did when you could have just gotten straight to the point ages ago?"

"Because I want to make sure nobody ruined my fun."

"How is attacking my daughter's Swablu making sure nobody ruined your fun?!" Hailey snapped.

"It wasn't; that was just part of the fun," Adelina said heartlessly. "Though, I have to admit, watching Alexa and Daniel squirm was fun, too... And the look on Troy's face when his Daycare Centre had a Jellicent visit? I wish I could've seen that..." Between the three siblings, Harvey was the only one who managed to maintain his calm exterior; Hayden was close to exploding again while Hailey looked ready to claw Adelina's face off.

"But why even bother with all of that? Sure, the kids had discussions about you, but they weren't going to step on your toes or anything; it was all talk," Harvey argued reasonably.

"Yeah, and Alexa had her own problems to deal with," Colin added. "Why would she consider wasting her time on you?"

"Yet she smelled sabotage from the newspaper photo..."

"If she did, it would have just been her speculation until you came out and admitted it yourself not too long ago," Lily said wisely. "There was absolutely no need for you to try and kill her over it – twice, might I add!?" Adelina ignored Lily and smirked at Harvey.

"Y'know, recalling your Serperior during Carter's control was very smart of you," she said with deceptive sweetness as Josh actually helped Carter onto his feet; the Swampert held out his arm to the Malamar, who gripped it with a tentacle to pull himself onto his feet – Naomi and Lily smiled at the sportsmanship they'd just witnessed. "Too bad Alexa wasn't that smart."

"Pardon?" Lily asked, smile fading from her face.

"Oh, I tried to use some of her Pokémon against her – including her Lucario during our first encounter – but she never once thought to just put them back into their Poké Balls," Adelina explained, looking at her perfect manicure; her nails were painted in a deep scarlet red. "Maybe that Zoroark of hers wouldn't have gotten so badly hurt if she was a little smarter. ...or...A LOT smarter."

"Will you just SHUT UP ABOUT HURTING MY—D'AAGH!" Hayden suddenly yelped in agony as Harvey slapped his hand across Hayden's back. Lily and Naomi were alarmed, but Lily was additionally concerned for Hayden as he tried to endure his pain. Adelina blinked in confusion.

"Hayden, are you all right?!" Lily asked. Instead of answering her, Hayden glared violently at his older brother.

"What was THAT for?!"

"I redirected your anger," Harvey said simply.

"What's wrong with a slap on the head?!" Hayden asked interrogatively.

"Your head isn't tender, Mr Hero," Harvey answered wittily. Hayden sighed as he looked away from Harvey. He suddenly felt himself mellowing out as his pain faded; he sighed again as he looked up at Harvey with a more relaxed look in his eyes.

"Thanks." Harvey happily nodded at his little brother.

"Okay...that was...odd..." Adelina cleared her throat. "Anyway...Carter against Josh, myself against Hailey...I could not have asked for a better outcome than this!" she said with pleasure as a look of sinister joy began to form on her face. "Now I'll prove that I am the better Trainer once and for all!"

"I'm pretty sure better Trainers don't try to kill their rival's sibling's offspring," Harvey said as he rolled his eyes. "Twice."

"Or attack their rival's older sibling's son's Daycare Centre," Hayden added, his own wit steadily returning to him; he even had a tiny smirk on his face.

"Or their youngest daughter's non-battling Pokémon just to get a reaction," Hailey concluded, though she sounded more mean-spirited in comparison to her brothers.

"Be that as it may...only one Pokémon can remain standing and be the victor in a Pokémon battle; I'll prove that Carter will BE that Pokémon and there is NOTHING you can do about it, Hailey! And, once I'm done with that, the kids are next!" Hayden would have violently exploded again, but he neither had the urge nor the energy; he merely snarled brutally at her. Harvey, however, observed the many injuries on the Malamar's body; he smirked at Adelina after noting that some of the wounds were older than others.

"If he can last that long," he said tauntingly.

"Oh, he will," Adelina said, her eye beginning to twitch rapidly again. "And I will see to it that he is the last thing Alexa sees as she takes her dying breath...!"

"That's not going to happen," Harvey smirked. "The Pokémon you saw us using against you aren't the only ones we have."

"Apart from me; you've seen all of mine," Naomi said shyly.

"That'll change eventually, angel," Harvey said with a wink at his ex-wife. "But we still have Pokémon who could EASILY band together and take Carter down with Josh at the drop of a hat!"

"Then why AREN'T YOU DOING THAT?!" Adelina yelled viciously.

"You wanted a one-on-one with Hailey, right? We're letting you have that. That and it's called fairness, which is a completely foreign concept to you, clearly," Harvey said mockingly.

"Fine...I'll have my one-on-one with Hailey...but I'm going to win it!" Adelina declared selfishly. "I won't lose again!" Concerned, Hailey looked over at her Swampert.

"Josh? Are you okay with this?" The green-eyed Swampert looked back at Hailey with a sweet smile on his face.

"Swampert!" he winked. With the vote of confidence from Josh, Hailey nodded and looked at Adelina with her own confidence.

"Let's finish this..."

 _To be continued..._


	58. Chapter 58

**Chapter Fifty Seven – Hurricane Adelina pt VIII**

Keenan made his way into Xavier's recovery room, taking care not to drop either of the items he was holding, and walked over to Xavier's bed, giving Troy and the three Pokémon a gentle smile. However, upon seeing him, Troy could only worry as he remembered what Alexa had told him not too long ago; about how Keenan was held against his will for a considerable amount of time by Adelina's Jellicent. Xavier, however, was pleased to see Keenan was alive and well.

"Hey, buddy! You doing okay?" Keenan nodded at Xavier as he placed the cake carrier on the bed.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Here; Alex and I got these for you guys," he said generously. Perri opened the carrier, revealing a mouth-watering collection of Poké Puffs of all colours and toppings; the cakes were either of the mint, chocolate, vanilla, orange, strawberry or coffee flavours, while the toppings were either sugar sprinkles, sugar stars, sugar balls or chocolate flakes.

"Thanks! I am SO glad I'm not nil by mouth, whatever that means," Xavier said with delight as he took a chocolate Poké Puff with chocolate flakes on top of the icing.

"Zorr-orr," Perri said politely, despite not immediately taking any of the cakes in front of her.

"Nine," Michael nodded gratefully before carefully taking a strawberry Poké Puff topped with sugar sprinkles with his teeth. Keenan turned his attention to Troy and handed one of the cocoas over to him.

"And we got this for you, too." Troy accepted the beverage cup as he gave Keenan a nervous smile.

"Thanks, but are you sure you're okay?"

"All things considered, yeah," Keenan replied, starting to feel a little nervous himself. "I got upset, but Alex made me feel better."

"That's your big sister for you," Troy smiled. "I take it she's with Keith right now?"

"Yeah, but he's really distressed," Keenan replied, losing what smile he had on him. "I don't think talking to him is going to be easy for her; we were talking about her and Keith not long before we found him along our way..."

"Ah...that'll probably make things awkward," Troy mused. "Speaking of which, it's going to be awkward letting Peggy and the twins know about all of this; they've been out of the picture for a while now."

"Feels like forever since I last saw those three," Xavier added in agreement.

"Maybe I should let them know."

"No, don't," Keenan said in weak protest. "Aunt Hailey should do it; it'll be better coming from her and, besides, they're kind of in school right now."

"Dammit," Troy groaned as he slapped his free hand on his forehead. "I keep forgetting that they're the only ones who go to school anymore!"

"That kind of means they've missed out on all the action," Xavier smirked.

"Trust me, it was something that nobody should have been a part of," Keenan said apprehensively as Perri finally took a mint cake with sugar stars sprinkled on the icing from the Poké Puff platter. "I don't doubt Aunt Hailey would agree..." Just as Keenan had momentarily placed his cup of cocoa into the carrier he'd placed on Xavier's bed, the room's door opened and Iara merrily raced towards Keenan and leapt up at him. Keenan was alarmed to feel Iara clinging to his shirt, but soon picked up his runt of a Vaporeon and held her in his arms, euphoric to be reunited with his partner properly. "Iara! How are you feeling?"

"Poreon!" Iara replied happily as she touched Keenan's nose with her own. As she nuzzled him, a nurse walked into the room with Reese and Ava in her arms and Ryder alongside her with Jollie in his arms. Xavier was over the moon to see Ryder, despite the Lucario's look of anxiety.

"Hey, guys! Man, I'm glad to see you're all okay!" Ryder mustered a tiny smile as he looked up at his hospitalised ally.

"Yeah, we're okay..."

"Buneary!" Jollie rejoiced. The nurse looked around the room, but ended up looking at Troy and Keenan in confusion.

"Where's the boy who came in with this Buizel and Pichu?"

Elsewhere, in a different part of the Pokémon Centre, Keith and Alexa continued to sit next to one another on the bench in awkward silence, each clasping their cups of cocoa in both hands that they rested on their laps. They seemed oblivious to the numerous Pokémon Centre staff members and visiting Trainers who sometimes passed them, despite none of them acknowledging the teens in any sense. Eventually, Keith sighed quietly as he sat up and looked up at the ceiling and wall in front of him.

"...I..." Having heard Keith speaking up, Alexa glanced up at him curiously. "I know you didn't have a choice but to ask for my help...but..." Keith sighed again as he lowered his head. "I dunno..."

"You'd rather I hadn't asked for your help?" Alexa wondered.

"...kind of..." Keith glanced over at her. "Not because of anything trust related, but...I just didn't feel like the right person to ask..."

"I got that; you already explained your case."

"I-I dunno, I just...I..."

"You're not sure if you should have agreed to help me or not because you have experience of being a Trainer," Alexa deduced. Keith nodded.

"I trust you, of course I do, but...would it have mattered if I hadn't helped you? Like we've established, I'm not a Trainer and I've never had the experience of being one before..." Alexa felt sorry for him again.

"Even those with the most experience started with none," she said philosophically. Keith's eyes widened as he looked at her in bafflement. He sighed as his demeanour softened to a small frown.

"Y-Yeah, I guess..." Keith's uncertainty made Alexa feel awkward again as they looked away from one another. During yet another awkward silence, Keith and Alexa unknowingly drank from their cups at precisely the same time; despite the cocoas not being as warm as they were when they were brewed, Alexa ended up taking another sip when Keith looked at her sadly. "...how do you do it?"

"Hm?" Through the corners of her eyes, Alexa looked at Keith in confusion.

"How do you cope whenever a Pokémon of yours got so badly hurt that they needed surgery to get better?" Alexa frowned as she lowered her cup from her lips.

"You already know the answer to that..." Keith felt even more distressed as he suddenly remembered Xavier; he remembered seeing Alexa in such a panic that he had to actually slap her across the face to get her to calm down even for a fleeting moment. He sighed as he buried his face in one hand.

"Oh, God, I am so sorry...!"

"...but..." Keith glanced at her in confusion. "Xavier wasn't the first to need surgery...there was Phoenix after his battle against Cynthia, but...the other three cases weren't life-threatening, much like Robbie's..." Alexa removed the plastic top of her cocoa cup to inspect how much of her beverage was left; just under half of her cocoa remained. "Shade broke his arm once, Kayla had a Poison Sting needle stuck in her shoulder – like, it was healed over stuck inside her shoulder – and Chaser had nerve damage in one wing after a battle with another Trainer's Skarmory went pear-shaped..."

"How did you cope with those?" Keith asked carefully.

"My family and other Pokémon were there for me," Alexa replied. "I was apprehensive during all three cases, but...they were especially invaluable during Phoenix's surgery...I was...petrified...like I was with Xavier's..."

"Because of losing Lydia...?" Keith asked gently. Alexa nodded.

"I was scared of losing Phoenix and Xavier like I lost her... ...I guess her death is why I only have two Bug type Pokémon in my entire roster..." Alexa felt a smile creeping onto her face. "But...having that circle of support made me feel like things were going to be okay...even if it took me a while to get over my anxiety..."

"Your family was there for you..." Alexa nodded as she turned her head slightly to face him; Keith finally noticed her smile and looked at her in wonderment.

"You were there for me after Xavier was sent to surgery...and...just now, you were there for me against Adelina..."

"I didn't do all that-"

"No, I mean...when you held me after Adelina threatened me, I...I felt so secure...it...it felt like it used to feel, y'know?" Keith looked at her seriously.

"I meant what I said to her; if she laid a finger on you, I'd take the arm it belonged to."

"Morbid, but...I knew you meant it..." Alexa's smile grew as she looked up at Keith. "Thank you for being there for me..." Keith finally managed to smile warmly at her.

"Thank you for everything you've done for Ava..." Alexa smiled sweetly at him.

"Of course; I know how training her was important to you..."

"I named her after my Mom," Keith said spontaneously. "Her name was the only one I could think of, but...now I wouldn't change it for anything...does that sound weird?"

"Not at all; I think it's endearing." Alexa looked away from him coyly, though she still wore her loving smile. "...Keith?"

"Hm?"

"...I-I know this is far from the best time, but... ...I-I think I'm finally ready to answer my own question..." Keith blinked at her in bewilderment.

Carter roared in frustration as he constantly attempted to strike Josh with a fury of Night Slash attacks from both of his arm-tentacles, but each attack was always deflected by an Ice Punch delivered by both of the Swampert's massive fists. Naomi, Lily and Colin watched the struggle with intrigue, Harvey and Hayden watched fairly anxiously, Hailey was intensely focused on Josh's remaining health and Adelina was livid that Carter wasn't landing a single hit on Josh.

"Wow, they're evenly matched," Naomi remarked.

"They're not at equal strength, remember?" Colin said as he observed the battle. "Those cuts on Carter's face and chest have been there since we got here."

"Seems like Lexie's Pokémon have been more tenacious than usual," Lily said with concern.

"I guess they had to be," Naomi said worriedly.

"Hang in there, Joshie!" Hailey called encouragingly. Josh nodded in response as he matched his Ice Punches with Carter's Night Slashes.

"Carter, stop using Night Slash and do something USEFUL for a change!" Adelina commanded, stomping her foot in frustration. "Flamethrower!"

"Mrrrrrrr!" At the earliest opportunity, Carter exhaled a breath of flames that struck Josh's face; the Swampert recoiled and attempted to fight against the flames with his large hands, only for Carter to successfully land a Night Slash attack on him – Josh was knocked down to the ground with a shallow laceration starting from near his left shoulder down to his right hip. Carter panted heavily and almost toppled onto his knee as Josh recovered fairly quickly from the assault. Hailey shook her head disapprovingly.

"Carter can't take much more strain, Adelina!"

"He will do as I say and I say he can keep fighting!" Adelina snapped nastily. "I am going to be the better Trainer, Hailey, and that is all there is to it!"

"A better Trainer would know when their Pokémon has no energy left," Harvey began. "And Carter just doesn't have any energy to continue, plain and simple."

"Then why is he able to continue his attacks?!" Adelina asked boastfully.

"You're making him run on an energy deficiency!" Hayden answered angrily. "If you don't stop this atrocity of a battle right now, he'll most likely end up with health problems if he doesn't get his energy back!"

"Carter is going to keep going until that Swampert is kissing the dirt beneath us, that is that!" Hailey raised an eyebrow.

"Josh is part Ground type; he doesn't have a problem with dirt – he's the MUD Fish Pokémon, for crying out loud!"

"In any case, Carter, use Superpower RIGHT NOW!" Adelina screamed. Carter hesitantly glared at Josh as his body burned in his blue aura. He darted towards the fatigued Swampert.

"Endure!" Hailey exclaimed quickly. Josh glared at the oncoming Malamar and managed to grab hold of both of his shoulders; the two Pokémon looked at each other's eyes before Josh mustered up the strength he needed to toss Carter away from him. Josh panted as he recovered from the strain, while Carter struggled even more to regain his footing.

"HA! It landed, it landed!" Adelina rejoiced proudly. "Now Carter's stronger AND bulkier! Your precious Joshie's not going to take another hit from Carter NOW!"

"I still don't understand; why do you want to defeat me so badly?" Hailey asked apprehensively as she noticed Carter's suffering during his attempt to stand up; she felt even more anxious when she saw Josh walking over to the Malamar and offering his arm again.

"Because you keep defeating ME!" Adelina shrieked viciously in response.

"Eh?"

"You...you really don't get it, do you, Hailey?" Adelina asked in horror. "You haven't noticed how you ALWAYS defeated me in the Contest Battles?! No matter how are Pokémon were matched up, YOU ALWAYS WON!" Hailey faced Adelina in shock.

"Adelina, I-I-"

"And I'm SICK OF IT! Why do you think I've not been in touch for six years?! I've been TRAINING!"

"With the Super Training regimens," Harvey muttered under his breath in disgust.

"Now, I FINALLY have the chance to prove that MY Pokémon are superior to YOURS!" Hailey began to feel sorry for Adelina, despite feeling such a thing towards the woman who'd committed so many atrocities against her family being the last thing she expected.

"T-Then why didn't you just-"

"CARTER! Superpower once again!" Adelina commanded violently. Carter, using Josh's arm for support, struggled back onto his feet and looked back at Adelina with concern; the pause allowed Josh to get some distance between him and Carter. "CARTER!"

"He doesn't want to keep going, you idiotic whore!" Hailey screamed, losing what little pity she briefly had. "Let's end this right now, walk away and have a proper battle when both of our parties are well-rested and fully healed!"

"NO! Carter can keep going!"

"Whether or not he can is irrelevant if he doesn't WANT to keep going," Harvey yelled in frustration.

"He's GOING to keep going and he's not going to stop until he DEFEATS THAT STUPID SWAMPERT!" Hailey took a deep breath to calm herself down before she spoke to Adelina again.

"Adelina, we've been at this for..." Hailey paused briefly to look at her Xtransceiver for the time; the digital clock displayed on the screen showed the time of 10:56. "Over an hour!" Hailey faced Adelina with a mild look of desperation on her face; Adelina felt an eye twitch as she saw her rival's demeanour. "Please, stop this! It's not healthy to push our Pokémon beyond their limits, and I think your Malamar's already pushed his! Please! Don't make him suffer for something like this!"

"Well, I'm glad you're not actively trying to surrender like SHE did...but I don't care for that look of yours..."

"Adelina, just stop and take a look around you!" Hailey exclaimed as she held both of her arms out. Adelina looked around at the abnormally large patch of singed grass between her and Hailey. "Is the damage you've already caused REALLY worth defeating me ONCE?!"

"ONCE IS ALL I NEED TO PROVE I'M BETTER THAN YOU!" Adelina yelled angrily at the top of her voice; she was so loud Harvey recoiled and clasped both hands over his ears.

"Ow..."

"CARTER! SUPERPOWER AT ONCE!"

"Mrr..." Once more, Carter's body burned in his blue aura as he sluggishly charged towards Josh, who could only watch sympathetically as Carter complied with his master's command against his better judgement. Hailey heaved a shaky sigh submissively as she looked at Josh sadly.

"Josh, dodge and Earth Power," she said half-heartedly. Josh didn't even need to leap away from Carter's attack; it was so slow that Josh simply walked out of Carter's trajectory. While Carter struggled to keep his balance, Josh's entire body shone in a bright yellow light and stomped his foot on the ground, causing the earth to rumble underneath the Malamar as the same light that enveloped Josh erupted from the ground, attacking Carter with its full force. Josh hadn't even put his full energy into executing the Earth Power attack, yet it was enough to leave Carter writhing in agony on the ground.

"CARTER! You get back up RIGHT FUCKING NOW!" Adelina commanded spitefully. Carter grunted as he tried to comply, but he found it exceedingly harder to move, let alone carry out his harshly delivered command. Seeing the Malamar in such pain began to bother Naomi as she buried her eyes in Harvey's chest.

"I-I can't watch anymore!" she cried. Harvey drew her into a cuddle and held her securely.

"Then don't," he said gently. Hayden, Colin and Lily were also starting to feel disturbed by how poorly Adelina was treating her Pokémon.

"Adelina, stop it! He-" Hayden held his arm in front of Lily, stopping her from attempting to reason with Adelina. As Lily looked at Hayden in confusion, he gave her a look of sincerity as he shook his head at her.

"Hailey, just end this." Hailey looked back at Colin sadly.

"Colin...!"

"Please, Honeybee; it has to end. Now."

"It WILL, Colin," Adelina said through gritted teeth as she glared at Carter; he'd only managed to roll onto his belly and very little else. "All right, Carter...if you can't use Superpower...you're going to use Dark Pulse and it had BETTER defeat Josh or you'll regret it for months!" Sweating profusely, Carter raised his head to face Josh as a tiny ball of dark purple energy formed in his gaping beak; he managed to release a fairly weak string of dark rings towards Josh.

"Mirror Coat!" Hailey exclaimed quickly as her attention was swiftly redirected back to the battle. Josh's entire body became coated in his mirror-like shield just as the Dark Pulse attack struck his chest, but Josh made certain the rebounded attack missed Carter by redirecting it to a random clearing to his left. Colin shook his head.

"Hailey, stop dragging things out! For everyone's sake, just finish this!" Hailey looked over at Adelina again; she was glaring savagely at Carter as he tried again to get back onto his feet, but his attempt to do so only caused the lacerations he received during his battle with Alexa's Pokémon to bleed once more. Seeing the immense agony riddling Carter's face finally got to Lily as she buried her face in Hayden's shoulder. Hayden held onto her softly, stroking her hair to settle her anxiety.

"...Adelina, please...don't make me do this...! ...not in his condition...!"

"Hurry UP, Carter!" Adelina yelled impatiently. "Do as I say and get that Swampert!" Hailey felt hurt; Adelina had allegedly stopped paying attention to her quite some time ago and was intent on making Carter suffer far more than he already had. Overwhelmed with pity towards Carter, Hailey felt a sob in the back of her throat and tears irritating her lavender eyes as she finally realised...that Adelina was no longer the person she remembered...which hurt her even further. Seeing Hailey shivering violently where she stood concerned her brothers and husband deeply, but they understood her despair; she was forcing herself to do something she absolutely did not want to do, but, deep down, she knew she had no choice. As much as it pained her to do so, she delivered her final command to Josh...with sorrow riddling her voice.

"...H-Hydro Cannon...!" Josh, too, became tearful as he opened his mouth to allow an orb of bright blue energy to form in front of it.

"HA! If you think that'll stop Carter, then you're mistaken! Carter, see that Hydro Cannon with Superpower!" Adelina exclaimed with a psychotic smirk. However, when she saw that Carter wasn't even twitching, she looked at him in horror. "Carter?!"

"SWAAAAAH!" Josh fired the incredibly thick and extremely powerful burst of water from his mouth, which was headed straight for Carter, tears escaping the Swampert's eyes as he released his strongest attack with every ounce of strength he had left.

"CARTER!?" Carter watched the Hydro Cannon steadily approaching him. He lowered his head, closed his eyes...and smiled.

"Mal-mar..."

"CARTER?!" Adelina tried again to make her Malamar react to the oncoming threat against him, but could only watch...as the Hydro Cannon swamped the submissive Overturning Pokémon. As soon as the water touched Carter, Hailey and Josh averted their eyes; knowing that Carter would be in far more pain than he could handle during the attack, neither Hailey nor Josh had the heart nor the stomach to see his suffering...despite it being impossible to see Carter during the Hydro Cannon's execution. "CARTER!"

 _To be continued..._


	59. Chapter 59

**Chapter Fifty Eight – Despedida**

As the Hydro Cannon attack reached its crushing conclusion, Adelina collapsed onto her knees in despair as she saw Carter's unconscious form lying limp on the ground before her. That was the first time since the battle started where everything fell silent, which felt very strange to everyone; they had gotten so used to the constant chorus of battle cries and raised voices that they'd almost forgotten what any other atmosphere was like. Hailey, without uttering a single word, recalled her equally distressed Swampert back into his Poké Ball; though the war was victorious for her and her family, her triumph failed to put a smile on Hailey's face. As a matter of fact, nobody was smiling; Lily and Naomi were still disturbed by Carter's mistreatment and hid their eyes in their husbands' embraces, while Hayden, Harvey and Colin all watched Hailey worriedly, wondering what she was going to do now that the war, for lack of a better term, had finally reached its end. Soon, the silence was delicately broken by Adelina as she quietly roared in exhausted anger and slammed her fists weakly on the dried mud beneath her; she kept her eyes shut tightly as she fought against her tears.

"No...! No...! I-I can't lose...! I-I SHOULDN'T have lost...!" Adelina's voice was cracking and sounded ever so slightly strained; she'd raised her voice countless times since she first ambushed Keith and Keenan that her vocal cords were likely to be sore. "I don't get it...! ...why...?!" Hailey began to walk over to Adelina, giving Carter a very quick and apologetic look along her way. Seeing her approaching Adelina made Colin apprehensive in particular, but it only served to worry Harvey and Hayden further. "...why...?! ...after EVERYTHING I've done...why did I lose...!?"

"You were so caught up in trying to win that you were oblivious to your Pokémon's lack of stamina," Hailey said carefully, somehow managing to put her own anguish aside. Adelina's fists clenched tighter as she heard Hailey talking to her.

"Y-You shut up...!"

"You didn't notice how reluctant Carter was to continue the battle; you pushed him and your other Pokémon to their limits and beyond."

"I said shut up!" Adelina screamed as she looked up at Hailey furiously; she was livid beyond belief, but tears dripped from her eyes, carrying traces of her black mascara along with them. "I don't need to be patronised...!"

"How long have you been feeling like this?" Hailey asked out of legitimate concern. "Like...like you have to defeat me at any cost?" Adelina lowered her head as she fought against her sadness again.

"Too long...! Y-You've...you've always made me feel inferior...ever since we first met...! I'm...I'm sick of it...!" Somehow, Hailey found it in her heart to feel sorry for Adelina all over again.

"Why didn't you tell me, Adelina? I could have helped you...or, at least, disprove your sense of inferiority..."

"Didn't see the point," Adelina replied crabbily. "You wouldn't have listened to me anyway...!" Hailey looked down at her in shock.

"Adelina, I...of COURSE I would have listened to you! What makes you think I wouldn't have?!"

"I don't know," Adelina admitted. "It...it was just an assumption I had as a child..." She returned to a more relaxed kneeling position and sighed despondently; Hailey felt even worse when she saw the look of utter defeat on her face. "I...I hated you...for the longest time...you always defeated me...it was never anyone else; just you...I hated you for being the only one I couldn't defeat..."

"Adelina, I-I never meant for you to feel ANY of those things!" Hailey said woefully. "A-And I certainly never meant for THIS to happen!" she added, looking back at the fainted Malamar. She suddenly lowered her head in shame and held onto her left arm nervously. "...or anything to happen..."

"Hailey..." Colin began to feel even more sorry for his wife.

"Alexa...Keenan...Troy...Peggy...Daniel and Daphne...!" Hailey clenched her arm as she successfully choked back a sob, but a tear fell from each of her eyes all the same. "I-I'm so sorry...! E-Everything that's happened to you...it's all my fault...!"

"Now, that isn't true!" Harvey said defensively.

"He's right," Adelina said in a grumble. Hailey looked down at her with distraught. "It's because I hated you so much that I wanted your whole world to fall on you...since your family's essentially your whole world...I sought to make it fall apart..."

"A-All because of how you lost to me so constantly...?!" Hailey asked tearfully.

"Yes..."

"Adelina, I..." Hailey wiped her eyes with her fingers. "I am so, so sorry if I've made you feel like dirt... I-I want you to know that was NEVER my intention..."

"Hmph..."

"...but...I never became a Pokémon Co-Ordinator to get famous...I became a Pokémon Co-Ordinator because I adore the creative possibilities behind Pokémon attacks and displaying such imaginative choreographies for everyone to enjoy... It never felt like a competitive sport to me...not even once..." Adelina suddenly looked up at Hailey in terror.

"What?!"

"I just have so much fun during Contests that I forget that it's supposed to be a competitive thing," Hailey confessed.

"There's nothing wrong with that," Colin smiled timidly.

"...but...you were the opposite, Adelina; somehow, you let your competitive streak consume you like an incurable disease – and it drove you to lengths so extreme that you were willing to murder a child just to get what you wanted..."

"A child? But Alexa's not-"

"She's seventeen; by law, that makes her a child until her next birthday." Adelina was left utterly speechless. "But do you know what's worse about this whole thing for me? Everything could have been avoided if you came clean to me about your feelings as soon as you started having them all those years ago!" By now, Hailey was more angry than upset, but only slightly.

"Hailey, I...I had no idea...!"

"You never thought to ask me about ANYTHING, that's why! You were so caught up in your own frustration that you stopped caring about everyone around you!" Hailey cried in frustration. "It even drove you to virtually abuse your own Pokémon! I mean, look at Carter!" she yelled as she held an arm towards the motionless Malamar. "LOOK AT HIM!" Reluctantly, Adelina did so; however, seeing him only saddened her further. "I didn't WANT to have Joshie use Hydro Cannon! I didn't want that! But you kept pushing him to the point where his old wounds started to bleed again! Your behaviour towards him was so deplorable that it disturbed BOTH of my sister-in-laws! And believe me when I say that Lily isn't so easily disturbed in that way!" Adelina looked over at Naomi and Lily; as she watched and observed their lingering anxiety, she caught Hayden nodding at her, as if to confirm what Hailey said about his wife as the truth. Shakily, Adelina finally retrieved Carter's Poké Ball from her purse and held it weakly at the Overturning Pokémon.

"...return..." As Carter was recalled into his Poké Ball, Hailey used one hand to hold her quirky ponytail and the other to forcefully pull all three hair ties out of her hair; despite a few strands of her bleach blonde hair having been plucked out as she removed her hair ties, her hair soon hung freely and loosely from her head, reaching all the way down to her lower back. "Hailey...I-I-"

"I wouldn't bother apologising; it's too late for it – the damage has already been done and it'll take a while to fully recover from it," Hailey said rather coldly as she pocketed her hair ties. Adelina stared sorrowfully at Hailey, but it wasn't until her tears and mascara fell from her eyes more constantly and her sobs were starting to catch up to her that Hailey began to feel even more guilty.

"I know...! I-I just...I-I didn't think...th-that you saw Contests differently...!"

"That's not the only thing I saw differently," Hailey said hesitantly as she searched her other pocket for something. She tossed the item in front of her, landing just in front of her knees; it was a hand-made bracelet, made with plastic beads with the colours of a rainbow and a plastic string. Diffidently, Adelina took the bracelet and held it in both hands, staring at it with watery eyes as she tried to figure out...where she'd seen it before...

"...this..."

"That's the bracelet you made for me after we became friends," Hailey explained. The revelation of the bracelet's origins made Colin, Harvey and Hayden even more sympathetic towards Hailey; Lily began to tear up, but Naomi was far closer to breaking into sobs. "I made one for you, too, remember? We exchanged them in Slateport..."

"Oh, my God...!" Adelina held one hand just over her lips as she remembered the moment in question; it was possibly the very last time she harboured no hard feelings towards her fellow Co-Ordinators, not just Hailey. "Y-You kept this...!?"

"Of course I did; I saw it as a sign of the friendship I thought we had..." Her tears threatening to get the better of her again, Hailey looked away from Adelina. "But what's the point of a friendship bracelet if the friendship it signifies is a lie...?!"

"A l-?! Hailey, it wasn't a lie!" Adelina cried despairingly.

"Not at first, maybe," Hailey said tearfully. Harvey held Naomi even closer as he heard a small sob escaping the back of her throat; she'd finally succumbed to her sorrow. "A real friend wouldn't have ruined your Contest appeal out of spite...or flirt with your husband and your brothers...or try to hurt your children... Or anything else you've done of note..."

"Hailey...!"

"Goodbye, Adelina," Hailey said simply as she began to turn and walk away from the down-trodden Adelina. Adelina watched Hailey walking away from her as her anger faded away completely, replacing it with an overwhelming sense of remorse. She felt her eyes stinging her as more tears and more of her mascara ran down her face.

"Hailey...! Hailey!" Adelina called shakily, but Hailey continued to walk towards her family with no intention on giving Adelina any more acknowledgement. Adelina, however, felt even more devastated the further Hailey walked away from her. "HAILEY!" That final scream before Adelina broke down into loud sobbing brought tears to Hailey's eyes as she choked back a sob of her own. She soon walked passed her entire family and walked down the forest path in front of her. Without giving Adelina another thought, Colin, Harvey and Hayden walked away from the clearing in gradual pursuit of Hailey, Lily and Naomi continuing to hold onto their respective partners as they, too, followed her.

By the time she was no longer within hearing range of Adelina's cries of despair, Hailey eventually slowed her walking pace until she came to a complete stop, allowing Colin, Harvey, Hayden, Lily and Naomi to catch up to her just in time for her to finally break into her own tears. In that instant, Colin quickly and gently caressed his sobbing wife as he held her in a comforting embrace; secure in her husband's arms, Hailey began to cry unrestrictedly.

"I know, Honeybee...I know..."

"That was...God, that was hard," Harvey sighed quietly. "Are you okay?"

"Does it LOOK like I'm okay...?!" Hailey wept, keeping her face buried in Colin's chest. "I'm the reason Adelina acted up the way she did...!"

"That's not true; it was miscommunication on her part – it wasn't your fault," Harvey said gently. Hailey sniffled as her sobbing quietened.

"...m-maybe... ...w-what if I-I could have done something...?" Hailey looked up at Harvey from the security of Colin's cuddle; Harvey pitied his little sister as he saw the look of guilt in her lavender eyes. "M-Maybe I could have prevented all of this sooner...?"

"Hailey, you had no way of knowing what was going on in her head," Hayden said gently. "Whether or not Adelina thought she could handle how she felt on her own is something I doubt we'll ever know, but don't feel like you have to be responsible for what she does and has done..." Hailey looked disappointed as she retreated back into Colin's chest.

"Easy for you to say...!"

"He's right, though, sis; you're not responsible for her life like you are for those of your Pokémon," Harvey said worriedly. Colin was the first and only adult to crack a loving smile.

"I'm proud of you, Hailey..."

"Hm...?" Hailey looked up at Colin, who, at the same time, looked down at the woman resting on his chest.

"I can only imagine how hard it was for you to end both the battle and your friendship with her...you did it."

"I-I didn't want to, Colin...!"

"I know, hun," Colin said softly as he stroked her hair. "But I'm proud of you for it; it was for the best." Hailey nodded slowly in reluctant agreement as she wiped her eyes again.

"...t-the kids... Peggy a-and the twins... ...t-they-"

"It's okay, Honeybee; I'll fill them in once our Pokémon are getting treated at the Centre," Colin said generously.

"Thank you...!" Hailey said appreciatively as she nestled in his embrace.

"Should we head to Nimbasa or...?" Hayden began to wonder.

"Definitely Mistralton," Harvey said quickly. He looked over at Lily, who'd only just calmed down enough to pry herself away from her husband. "Lily, can Cheryl take us there?"

"Y-Yes, she took Alexa there yesterday," Lily replied shakily.

"Think she can take us there now?" Lily nodded at Harvey as she slowly took out a Poké Ball, encased inside a Ball capsule with a seal of a small pink heart sitting on the top half of the capsule. She silently opened the Poké Ball, releasing her Gardevoir with a cloud of small pink hearts surrounding her as she appeared. Cheryl faced Lily courteously, awaiting her instruction, though she couldn't help but feel worried about how rattled she appeared to be.

"Will you take us to the Mistralton Pokémon Centre, please?" Lily asked politely. After observing how tired and shaken up the other adults appeared to be, Cheryl nodded.

"Gardevoir," she said compliantly. She relaxed her stance and closed her eyes as a rainbow aura surrounded the outline of her whole body. She suddenly opened her eyes, shining in the same white light that flashed around her and the six adults; as soon as the light faded away, Cheryl and the adults had completely vanished.

 _To be continued..._


	60. Chapter 60

**Chapter Fifty Nine – Respite**

The lobby of the Mistralton Pokémon Centre was quieter than it ever was; with the exception of the nurses walking through the lobby to access other areas of the Pokémon Centre and a lone youth with his Misdreavus sitting in the waiting area, there was no real activity taking place. The youth, brunette hair spiked upwards and chocolate eyes behind a pair of sensible spectacles, looked strikingly similar to a Pokémon Ranger; he wore a variation of the Pokémon Ranger jacket that was longer at the sleeves and covered all of his back, a different style of the white and black undershirt that had a single yellow stripe at the front in some kind of V formation, long black trousers and the usual Pokémon Ranger shoes and single glove on his right hand – his left, however, was wrapped in bandages. His Misdreavus, however, wore a pair of glasses with a crack in the left lens on her head. The pair looked at a magazine the young adult was reading contently until a flash of white light startled the pair of them; Cheryl suddenly appeared in the middle of the main lobby of the Pokémon Centre with Hayden, Lily, Harvey, Naomi, Hailey and Colin. The young man and his Misdreavus resumed reading the magazine – even though his Misdreavus probably being unable to make heads or tails of what was on the pages in front of her – as Lily returned Cheryl to her Poké Ball and the other adults handed their wounded Pokémon over to the nursing staff who had approached the sudden arrivals. As soon as she left her Poké Balls with the slightly overweight red-headed nurse, Hailey immediately held her Xtransceiver in front of her and tapped the touch screen several times. Colin watched her through the corner of his eye as he handed his Poké Balls to the middle-aged male nurse with slightly greying blonde hair.

"What're you doing?" he asked as he male nurse left with his Poké Balls.

"I'm calling Daniel; he should be free by now, he has a free period today," Hailey said quietly. "Oh...! I should tell Dad as well," she muttered quietly as she continued tapping her finger on the Xtransceiver's screen.

"Dad's in the know now?" Harvey asked after thanking the young ebony-haired nurse for accepting his Pokémon.

"Yeah, Alexa brought him up to speed yesterday," Hayden said quickly as he parted ways from the sandy blonde-haired nurse, Poké Balls in hand.

"I saw him this morning and said something along those lines," Hailey said shakily as a familiar-looking nurse curiously approached Hayden behind his back; her copper hair was tied up in a very neat low bun at the back of her head and her green eyes were behind a pair of rimless glasses.

"Hello again," the nurse said sunnily. Hayden spun around and faced the nurse with alarm. "I'm sorry to have startled you. I'm the nurse who spoke to your daughter over the Xtransceiver yesterday, about her Zoroark?"

"Oh, y-you're...Hardy, wasn't it?"

"Tanya. And, yes, it was," Tanya said cheerfully.

"You know her, bro?" Harvey asked with a light laugh as he and Lily walked over to him.

"Y-Yeah, she's the nurse who was looking after Xavier," Hayden explained.

"I still am," Tanya giggled. "He's quite popular today; he's with two boys and a group of Pokémon at the moment."

"Is one of them a younger boy?" Hayden asked, starting to subtly point at his eyes. "Twelve years old and blue eyes?"

"Aw, he's the one with the cutest Vaporeon I've ever seen!" Tanya said joyfully. "Do you know him?"

"Yes, he's my son."

"Would you please take us to him?" Lily asked politely as she held onto Hayden's arm. Tanya nodded.

"Of course!"

"You go on ahead; I'll stay here with Hailey," Colin said kindly. Harvey and Hayden nodded at Colin as they followed Tanya with Lily and Naomi close by. Hailey kept her eyes on her Xtransceiver as a second screen shot out from the left hand side of the device.

"Mum, what's going on?" Daniel asked curiously.

"Shouldn't you be in school, Dan?" Ian wondered spontaneously.

"Free period," Daniel replied hastily. "Seriously, Mum, is everything okay?"

"How long have you both got?" Hailey asked in a sigh. Ian and Daniel blinked in confusion.

"So, big sis brought you home, eh?" Xavier asked Keenan as he looked at the Buneary grinning at him; Jollie sat on Xavier's chest as he lay on the bed, with a half-eaten mint Poké Puff in her paws. "Wish I could've seen it."

"She must have bounced really high; it took her a little while to come back down again," Keenan replied with a nervous chuckle. "But, yeah...thanks for saving me, Jollie."

"Buneary!" Jollie said gleefully as she nodded at the young boy.

"By the way, Keenan wasn't kidding about the 'it took her a while to come back down' thing," Ryder began as he looked up at Xavier; he sat on the floor near Keenan with Layla sitting next to him – both Ryder and Layla were munching away at a strawberry Poké Puff. "Seriously, Jollie, how high DID you bounce?! And did you see Rayquaza during the attack?" he asked teasingly.

"Buh-nee," Jollie rolled her eyes, but laughed as she responded.

"To be fair, Jollie, you can reach about two storeys without actually using the Bounce attack," Troy laughed as he watched Reese breaking Ava's chocolate Poké Puff, making it easier for the little Pichu to sink her teeth into; Ava happily munched away at her broken down cake, much to the Buizel's delight as he ate some of his vanilla Poké Puff. Iara lay just behind Ava with a cofee Poké Puff with sugar sprinkles on the icing in front of her; she was in the middle of licking the icing off of the cake.

"Two stories? That doesn't sound like much," Ryder said despondently. "Jumping over two books?"

"Not that kind of storeys, Ryder." Troy ran his fingers through his bangs. "I mean Jollie can naturally jump up to the roof of, say, Keenan's house without any real effort."

"Does that mean she can jump over the house?" Xavier asked with wonder.

"Maybe her Dad was a Blaziken," Ryder joked.

"That might explain how she knows Sky Uppercut," Keenan said seriously. Jollie merely shrugged indifferently at the prospect.

"Bun?" Jollie was the first to see and hear the door to the recovery room opening. Troy, Keenan and the Pokémon then watched as Tanya slightly entered the room to allow passage for Harvey, Hayden, Lily and Naomi. After Tanya quietly bowed and left the room, Keenan happily ran over to Hayden and Lily, embracing the pair of them simultaneously.

"Mum! Dad! You're okay!" In an instant, Lily and Hayden both held their son warmly.

"Of course we are, sweetheart," Lily said with a loving smile on her face.

"We're glad you are as well, kiddo," Hayden smiled dotingly as Harvey and Naomi walked over to Troy.

"You doing okay, sport?"

"Yeah, everything's placid as a puddle here," Troy nodded. What smile he had suddenly weakened a little as he hesitantly asked his next question. "How did things go down there? Alexa gave me a brief run-down on what she got up to, but..."

"Well...let's just say that her efforts weren't for nothing," Harvey began, a proud smile gradually reaching his lips.

"She and Keith managed to buy us enough time and were able to weaken Adelina's Pokémon just enough for us to take care of," Hayden continued as he looked over at Troy.

"In the end, though, your Aunt Hailey brought the war home in our favour, and it was...actually very hard to watch," Harvey said with his smile fading into a frown.

"Josh defeated Carter – Adelina's Malamar – with Hydro Cannon," Hayden concluded.

"So it's over then?" Ryder asked hopefully as he swallowed the last of his Poké Puff.

"Yep," Harvey nodded.

"Awesome!" Ryder jumped up onto his feet and immediately gave his Zoroark brother a high five.

"I know, right?!" Xavier was equally as euphoric as Ryder. "Man, Alex's gonna be so happy when she hears that!"

"She and Keith both!" Ryder agreed, his bushy tail wagging wildly. Hayden looked around the room.

"Where ARE they anyway?" he wondered. Naomi also looked around and began to worry.

"I-I would've thought that they'd be here..."

"It's best to leave them alone," Keenan said with concern. The four adults turned to him in confusion.

"How come?" Lily asked gently.

"I think something happened with Robbie; Keith looked really upset when Alex and I found him and... ...I think she's still talking to him," Keenan explained.

"Oh, yes, his leg," Naomi said quietly. "I never thought of that..."

"I think we can afford to give them a little space for the time being," Harvey winked.

"They should know about what we just went through, though," Hayden said in very mild objection.

"They bought us time, Tiger; we can buy them some in return, can't we?" Lily asked with a very tiny playful smirk.

"Y-Yeah, I guess," Hayden said anxiously. Jollie hopped off of Xavier's chest and onto the floor as she began to quietly make her way out of the room. Ava discarded the second half of her broken Poké Puff to hurriedly follow the Buneary. Ryder and Layla immediately noticed the two small Pokémon exiting the room and quietly chased after them, looking slightly panicky. Somehow, nobody seemed to notice the departing Pokémon as they exited the room.

A lone Cyndaquil looked up at his Trainer as the pair walked down one of the Pokémon Centre's many corridors; Cyndaquil's Trainer was a girl in her mid-teens with long chestnut hair that was straight at the top, wavy at the bottom and was parted over her right shoulder, wearing a red and blue t-shirt with the words "I love P.O.K.E.M.O.N" in yellow font behind her, a pair of short pale blue shorts and white trainers. The pair eventually passed Keith and Alexa, who were completely oblivious to the passing girl and her Cyndaquil as Alexa looked at the final few millilitres of rapidly cooling cocoa in her beverage cup and as Keith watched her doing so; Alexa's smile was still loving, while Keith was still bewildered.

"I meant what I said yesterday," Alexa began quietly. "I did enjoy the night we ended up spending together in Driftveil...even if I did feel conflicted afterwards..."

"I meant what I said yesterday, too; I love you, Alexa...and I don't want to do anything you don't want me to," Keith said in earnest.

"I know," Alexa nodded. "The only reason I felt conflicted about everything in the first place was because I was uncertain about the state of our relationship...especially since we didn't talk about it once before it...happened."

"But I didn't get that vibe from you at the Humilau Water Gardens yesterday," Keith said as he raised an eyebrow. "Now that I'm thinking about it, you were happier than a Clamperl all day!"

"I WAS," Alexa laughed. "It...it was a great day for me overall; I made up with my Dad, Xavier regained consciousness after his surgery...you and I had breakfast together..." She looked up at Keith, her face beginning to blush from such a sentimental day. "I wasn't thinking about anything that happened beforehand; I was just enjoying the day as it went along..."

"So you weren't thinking about the fight we had after Oblivia?" Keith asked hesitantly. Alexa shook her head, but his sigh concerned her. "I say fight, but...it was one-sided..."

"Keith-"

"I'm..." Keith sighed again as he rubbed his eyes with his thumb and index finger. "I am so sorry...I was such an insensitive asshole..." He gave Alexa a timid smile. "Professor Hastings really gave me hell for it when I told him what I said to you."

"Keith, we don't need to go through all of this again," Alexa said anxiously. "I already believed your apology and I already apologised for doubting you..." Keith's smile died completely.

"I'm still sorry about how horribly I treated you..."

"It's okay, I forgive you..." Keith wasn't so sure; Alexa sounded fairly unconvinced. She looked up at him and saw how tense he appeared to be. In turn, Keith looked straight into her eyes; as comforting as they were, they weren't enough to put a smile on his face.

"You said you were ready to answer your own question, right?" he asked with slight dread. Alexa smiled at him sweetly as she placed a hand on his knee, which made him blush a little and face her with a mix of perplexity and anticipation.

 _To be continued..._


	61. Chapter 61

**Chapter Sixty – Closure**

Hailey and Colin sat side by side in the waiting area, each with a plastic cup of water as they tried to adapt to being in a much quieter and far safer environment. However, the doors of the Pokémon Centre suddenly opened automatically as Daniel, Daphne and Peggy, still wearing their Striaton Academy uniforms, hurried into the building with a fairly flustered Piper flying steadily behind Peggy. Hailey and Colin soon spotted the three children and left their seats, neglecting their water cups, to meet them; Peggy immediately ran into her mother's arms, who couldn't help but smile at her children's arrival.

"Hey...!" As she held onto Peggy, Hailey looked between Daniel and Daphne, who were equally surprised to see their mother's hair hanging loosely for a change. "I didn't ask you guys to meet us here...!"

"It-it's okay, we signed out properly, w-we're not going to get in trouble for this," Daphne said nervously. Hailey held an arm out, inviting her twins into a cuddle; as soon as they moved in for the hug, Colin joined and cuddled his children from behind.

"I don't think you kids have any idea how happy we are to see you," he said appreciatively.

"Were things really that bad?" Daniel asked worriedly. "Mum, are you okay?"

"I'm fine, baby," Hailey said gently as she stroked her son's hair. "Everyone's okay..."

"And the Pokémon?" Daphne questioned as the family embrace slowly began to break. "Are they okay?"

"Some got hurt more than others, but, really, it's nothing a Pokémon Centre can't cure," Colin smiled confidently as he stood up and stretched his back.

"W-Where is everyone?" Peggy asked with concern as she looked around the lobby. Piper spotted Keenan, Hayden and Lily making their way into the area, though they didn't seem to notice anything or anyone in the lobby itself.

"Ti-ruuuh!" Piper called. Hearing the Altaria's cry caused Hayden, Lily and Keenan to halt in their tracks as they were finally made aware of the presence of Peggy and the twins in addition to Hailey and Colin. The two families approached one another, despite Hayden's being relatively startled to see Peggy and the twins out of school.

"Hey, guys," Hayden greeted. "What brings you here?"

"Mum told us about what just happened," Daniel explained. "I just felt compelled to see how she, Dad and the rest of you were all doing for myself."

"All three of us did, Uncle Hayden," Daphne added worriedly. "W-We signed out, so the school knows we're gone this time!"

"Are you all okay, Uncle Hayden?" Peggy asked with concern. Hayden smiled kindly at her as he crouched down to meet her level.

"I think so, sweetie. We were just on our way to find Alexa to find out if she's okay," he explained as he stood up carefully, making sure he didn't bend his spine too much.

"What about you, Keenan? Mum mentioned you were involved in the whole thing," Daphne said fretfully.

"Keith, Alex and I were all involved at first," Keenan replied despondently. "Keith and Alex, th-they saved me from Adelina... ...well, Jollie did, technically..."

"Saved you?" Daniel asked with a very small element of terror in his voice. Hayden and Lily watched with concern as Keenan rolled up his sleeve, showing Daniel, his sisters and his parents the same pink mark he previously revealed to Alexa; seeing the mark horrified Hailey in particular.

"Oh, my God...!"

"Is that-"

"From her Jellicent," Keenan sighed in response to Daniel's would-have-been query as he pushed his sleeve back down his arm. "I was freed not long before our parents got to Entree Forest..."

"Oh, Keenan, I am so sorry...!" Hailey said tearfully. "I-I knew you were being attacked, but I didn't think she'd...she..." She trailed off as she redirected her energy into stifling her guilt-riddled sobs.

"I-It's okay...I've already spoken to Alex about it...I just wanna move on from it now..."

"I don't blame you," Daniel said kindly. "What about Alexa?"

"And Troy?" Daphne wondered.

"Troy's still with Xavier; he didn't get involved in anything, so he's perfectly fine," Lily answered Daphne.

"As for Alexa, we're about to find her, like I said not too long ago," Hayden continued.

"She should still be with Keith; he looked really upset when she and I found him and I haven't seen her since I left her to talk to him," Keenan explained.

"Want us to join you?" Colin offered.

"If you want to," Hayden said indifferently. "Keenan knows where she and Keith should be, so it's not really a hunt."

"I hope Lexa's okay," Peggy said anxiously as she began to follow the two families as they walked down one of the Pokémon Centre's many corridors, following Keenan's lead.

"Ti-ruuh," Piper said in agreement as she slowly flew behind Peggy.

Ryder and Layla managed to catch up with Jollie and Ava as the two little Pokémon ran down a different corridor of the Pokémon Centre; Ryder effortlessly lifted Jollie off of her feet while Layla scooped Ava into her arms – Ryder and Layla stopped in an instant as soon as Jollie and Ava were secure in their respective grips.

"Gotcha," Ryder panted. "Where were you two headed?"

"Bun-bun-buneary!" Jollie explained anxiously.

"I know you're worried about Alex," Ryder began as he and Layla walked slowly down the corridor side by side. "But leave her be; she'll get back to us when she's ready."

"Pichu, Pichu..."

"Keith'll be fine, too; he's with Alex, after all," Ryder smiled, his tail slowly beginning to wag again. "You saw the chemistry for yourself!" Ryder and Layla were about to turn a corner, but they spotted Keith and Alexa on the bench, with Alexa smiling lovingly. Ryder and Layla hid themselves behind the corner of the corridor they almost exited from and watched with avid curiosity as they observed the conversation between the teens. Having seen the kind of smile Alexa wore on her lips, Jollie and Ava watched excitedly.

"Yesterday was...all things considered...it was absolutely incredible..."

"Compared to today, it was pretty damn awesome," Keith admitted with a sheepish smile.

"I know, but...the way you were there for me during the heat of the battle we had against Adelina..." Alexa looked away from Keith, but her smile grew more tender and her blushing intensified a little. "It was...it was just amazing...YOU were amazing... ...you ARE amazing..." Keith suddenly felt his heart beating a mile a minute.

"Alexa?"

"If I'm honest, I...I don't think things would have worked out the way they had today if you weren't as supportive as you were," she said truthfully as she stood up. Keith watched her in complete bafflement as she coaxed him onto his feet by holding onto both of his hands and subtly tugging his arms to bring him to his feet. Alexa looked up at Keith, who felt himself blushing brightly as he found himself lost in her eyes, radiating in such a warming aura. "Really, I can't thank you enough for that."

"I-...y-yeah, n-no sweat," Keith said nervously. "Y-You know I care-"

"You care, you like and you love me...I know...I feel the same way." As soon as she saw Alexa slightly reinforcing her grip on Keith's hands, Jollie watched with high anticipation as she held both paws over her mouth. Ryder couldn't help but grin widely as his tail wagged more violently; Layla began to feel annoyed by the feeling of the Lucario's tail accidentally tapping her own in rapid succession, but she kept her eyes on Alexa before she let the frustration take hold of her. Keith felt a smile creeping onto his face as his grip on Alexa's hands was reinforced as well.

"Does that mean-"

"I love you, Keith. And...I can now say without a shadow of a doubt that I want us to be the way we were before Oblivia's aftermath threatened things between us." Keith's eyes lit up with complete delight as he smiled warmly at Alexa before literally pulling her into a loving embrace, placing one hand at the back of her head. Alexa nestled herself between his neck and shoulder as she wrapped her arms around his back. Seeing the embrace brought tears to Jollie's eyes, but the widest smile a Buneary could possibly wear. Ava, too, began to feel teary-eyed as she watched the loving union. Ryder and Layla smiled with absolute joy as Layla felt her tail intertwining with Ryder's.

"Alexa, I-I love you, too...!" Keith said lovingly as tears began to escape his eyes. "I promise I'll never hurt you like that again...! I swear on my life...!" Alexa drew herself away from his neck and shoulder and smiled at him sweetly, her own tears beginning to fall from her eyes as they ever so lightly touched foreheads and their eyes closed softly. Alexa's arms eventually wrapped loosely around the back of Keith's neck, while his arms gently wrapped around her waist.

"I believe you," Alexa whispered sweetly. After a few moments of blissful silence, Keith slowly moved his arms away from Alexa's waist and cupped her face gently in his hands...as he softly planted his lips onto hers. Alexa shifted her hands further up the back of Keith's neck as she held the tender kiss in place. Overwhelmed with glee after having witnessed such a touching scene, Jollie's tears finally escaped her eyes as she emitted an inaudible squeal of repressed ecstacy...before her entire being cloaked in a divine blue and white light.

"D'AAII!" Ryder yelped as he unintentionally dropped the glowing Buneary. Alerted to Ryder's presence, Keith and Alexa suddenly faced him, only for them to witness Jollie's glowing form slowly morphing as her legs grew longer and slender, allowing her to touch the ground unharmed. Alexa began to shiver and held both hands over her lips as she witnessed Jollie's ears growing in length and width at the tips and her body became longer and more slender. Everyone watched with awe and fascination as the little Buneary they once knew turned into an entirely different Pokémon. Once the heavenly light finally died, Jollie's new form was revealed for all to marvel; she had evolved into a Lopunny with a skinny figure, waist very barely distinguishable and chest completely flat. Confused beyond all comprehension, Jollie examined her paws and saw how she now had three little fingers instead of the rounded paws she was used to. She hastily patted herself down, feeling her new figure and suddenly realising what had just happened to her; as soon as she came to the realisation, she smiled widely as more tears formed in her eyes – a reaction Alexa shared entirely.

"Oh, my God, Jollie...! Y-You did it! Y-You really did it...!"

"Lopunny!" Overwhelmed with joy, Jollie ran straight into Alexa's arms as the pair held one another tightly as, to Keith's surprise, they began to cry.

"I-I can't believe this...!"

"H-Hey, it's okay, it-"

"No, Keith, y-you don't understand...!" Alexa sniffled as she looked up at him; he was even more surprised to see her smiling – it was very clear that he was seeing her crying out of happiness for the first time. "Jollie and I have wanted this for so long...! N-Now that it's happened, I... ...there are no words for it...!"

"L-Lopunny...!" Jollie, too, was smiling as she wept into Alexa's shoulder. Ryder and Layla slowly walked over to the teens, Ava still settled in Layla's arms.

"All that training and it was seeing you guys hooking up again that made her evolve," Ryder chuckled as he wiped a tear from his eye. "Not sure what to say about that..."

"Pichu!" Ava reached out to Keith, who happily accepted the little Pichu from the blue and white Zangoose. "Pichu, Pichu?" she asked hopefully. Keith turned to Alexa, who chuckled as she looked up at the starry-eyed Pichu.

"Yes, we are back together."

"That's what she asked?" Keith wondered. Alexa steadily released herself from her cuddle and stood up properly, her tears falling ceaselessly from her eyes, as she nodded in response to Keith's question. "Are you okay?" he asked, laughing.

"I've seen evolution so many times, but...its marvel is never-ending...!" Keith began to stroke her hair in an attempt to settle her sobs, but he couldn't help but smile at her as she seemed to be consumed by overwhelming happiness. "I'm just so happy...!"

"L-Lop-unny...!" Jollie said tearfully as she wiped her tears with one of her newly acquired long and fluffy ears.

"We're all happy for you, sis," Ryder said lovingly. Layla nodded in agreement. Through the corner of her eye, Alexa saw Keenan walking towards her with Hayden and Lily – at the very least – following behind him; Keenan was looking up at Hayden as he conversed with his parents. Alexa smiled widely as she ran straight towards her father, who was fortunate enough to look ahead of him just before she literally flung herself at him, giving him the biggest hug she could muster whilst being careful not to agitate his back injury. Though bewildered to see Alexa brimming with such joy, Hayden wrapped his arms around his daughter as he couldn't help but smile in her embrace.

"Hey...! What's all this about?" Keenan looked ahead of him, only to find Jollie as a very different Pokémon.

"Jollie?!" Keenan ran towards Jollie to get a closer look at her new form; the only way Keenan could tell that the Lopunny used to be his sister's Buneary was the green ribbon hanging loosely from her slender neck. "Whoa, you look great!"

"Lopunny!" Eventually, Hayden, Lily and Hailey's entire family gathered around Keith, Ryder, Jollie and Layla as they, one by one, saw Jollie's new form for themselves. Alexa immediately ran straight back to Keith, who placed one arm around her shoulders and continued to hold Ava in his other arm.

"She finally evolved, huh? Wow, congratulations, Jollie," Hayden said kindly. Jollie was completely consumed by flattery as she hid her face behind both ears, which she held over her whole body like a pair of drawn curtains.

"Lopunny...!"

"When did this happen?" Lily asked, awe-struck at how elegant Jollie now looked.

"Only a minute or so ago," Keith answered.

"Nya-yah nyah-nyah nii-yah!" Layla sang merrily as she held onto Ryder from behind; the Lucario didn't seem to argue with the sudden cuddle.

"You and Keith are back together?!" Keenan asked in shock. Harmoniously, Keith and Alexa nodded in confirmation.

"I think she saw the whole thing and it was enough to trigger her evolution."

"Aww, that's so sweet, Lexa!" Peggy said delightfully. Both Keith and Alexa looked down at the young girl, but Keith looked at her in confusion. "She was happy that you were happy!"

"That's exactly it, yeah," Alexa nodded as she wiped her eyes again. "I-I just didn't think it'd happen like this...!"

"Alexa, who's-"

"Oh, right..." Alexa took a deep breath before smiling at Keith. "Keith, this is Peggy, my youngest cousin." Peggy looked up at Keith with a cute smile.

"Hi!" Keith waved at her in response. Alexa turned her attention to Daphne and Daniel.

"And those two are her twin siblings, Daphne and Daniel."

"Daniel and I've already met," Keith laughed nervously.

"So, you and Alexa are really back on?" Daphne asked curiously.

"Yep," Alexa reiterated.

"Good; maybe now you won't be so depressing," Daniel said with a cheeky little grin. Keith scowled at him, but it was short-lived as he heard Alexa giggling; he looked at her in alarm.

"I hope not," she said in agreement. She suddenly spotted Hailey and Colin behind the twins and her smile waned slightly. "Aunt Hailey?"

"I'm all right, honey, don't worry about-" All of a sudden, Alexa ran straight towards her and wrapped her arms around her aunt. Her guilt rapidly returning to her, Hailey returned the embrace she'd received from her niece as, for a moment, her tears fell from her eyes. "I-I'm so sorry, Alexa...! I didn't mean-"

"Don't dwell on it."

"Hm?" Hailey and Alexa established eye contact; the older blonde was alarmed to see a smile on the younger's face.

"It'll only eat away at you." Hayden smiled warmly at Alexa as she repeated a piece of the advice he had given her several hours ago.

"That's my girl." Hailey huffed a chuckle as she smiled at Alexa as well.

"Thanks. I'm sorry I almost ruined a touching moment."

"I'm okay, Aunt Hailey," Alexa said happily as she reversed back to her original position under Keith's arm. "How did everything go, may I ask...?" Hailey's smile sweetened.

"It's over, Alexa...it's done; she's not going to hurt anyone anymore..."

"You defeated her?!" Keith asked in shock. Hailey nodded.

"So, Keith and I bought you enough time after all?!" Alexa asked wishfully. Hayden nodded once at her.

"And then some, sweetie," he added modestly. Alexa sighed with relief.

"Thank Arceus..."

"Yeah, I mean...things were getting heavy just before your Farfetch'd showed up," Keith said with a nervous chuckle as he looked at Hayden.

"I'm just glad it's all over now..."

"No arguments here," Colin agreed merrily. He suddenly looked over at Hayden and Lily. "We should let Xavier-"

"Been there, done that," Hayden laughed. "But he'll want to know about Alexa and Jollie."

"Oh, man, that Zoroark is going to be high as a Mantyke after all this," Ryder said happily. "C'mon, let's go!" he said keenly as he and Layla began to lead the whole group down the corridor. However, the excitement got the better of Jollie as she sped down the hallway. Alexa laughed as she began to follow her Pokémon, placing her arm around Keith's waist.

"Someone's eager," Daniel said...jokingly. Daphne laughed.

"Was that a joke?"

"So what if it was?" Daniel shrugged. Daphne laughed again and happily flung her arms around her twin as they walked along the hallway with the rest of the family.

"Thanks, we'll be sure to let him know if we see him," Troy said courteously to a male nurse with solid black hair. The nurse nodded as he quietly made his way out of the room; once he left, Reese literally jumped up and down with excitement.

"Bui-bui!"

"Great news indeed," Troy said happily as he caught the bubbly Buizel mid-jump. "Things are looking up!"

"And the view is looking awesome!" Xavier added teasingly. Iara laughed, but she rolled her eyes all the same.

"Doesn't it just!" Harvey laughed.

"I'm happy for him, I really am," Naomi said sweetly. "Keith's going to be so happy to hear this...!"

"No doubt; that guy loves his Pokémon almost as much as we do," Troy said praisingly. "Though, between you and me, I think he loves Alexa a little bit more," he winked at Harvey.

"We'll see," Harvey laughed. Suddenly, the door to the room literally burst open as the newly evolved Lopunny charged into the room and flung her arms around the alarmed Zoroark.

"G'AAH! What's-"

"LOPUNNY!" Jollie squealed with delight as Ryder and Layla soon made their way into the room with the rest of the family. Xavier, Troy, Harvey, and the other Pokémon in the room looked at the Lopunny with immense shock, but Naomi was mostly confused.

"Jollie?! That can't be you, can it?!"

"It's definitely her, Troy," Alexa said happily as Colin closed the door behind the group quietly. Harvey laughed again.

"Things are just getting better and better, aren't they!?"

"What do you mean?" Hayden asked curiously. Troy spotted Keith and smiled at him.

"We just spoke to the nurse who assisted with Robbie's emergency care; he's out of surgery and is currently in a recovery room of his own," he said proudly. The news brought relief and joy to Keith's heart as he spontaneously hugged Alexa again.

"Thank Arceus!" Alexa was more than happy to return the hug, as sudden as it was.

"When did you hear that?" Hailey asked.

"Just a few moments ago," Naomi replied gently.

"When did THIS happen, sis!?" Xavier asked as he stared at Jollie's Lopunny form in awe.

"A few minutes ago, apparently," Daphne answered.

"Keith and Lexa got back together!" Peggy said with childlike delight.

"Oh, wow, really?!" Keith and Alexa nodded at Troy. "That's great! Congrats, you guys!"

"Thanks, Troy," Alexa said bashfully.

"So, let me get this straight...Adelina's been put in her place, Keith and Alex are back on, Robbie's gonna make a full recovery and my big sis is finally big?" Xavier sighed with absolute content as he leaned back onto his bed, smiling cheerfully as he looked up at the bare white ceiling above him. "It doesn't get much better than this!"

"Don't count your Torchics yet," Alexa giggled as she searched her pockets and walked over to Xavier's bedside, flushing out the Luxury Ball she took from Entree Forest; Xavier sat up again and looked at Alexa in confusion as she held the Poké Ball in front of him. "Here; tell me what you think." Curious, Xavier picked up the Luxury Ball and examined it from all angles he could think of.

"Where did you get that?" Daniel asked.

"Entree Forest," Alexa answered.

"Adelina was going to use it to capture Ava after discovering her Lightningrod ability," Keith continued. "Then Alexa found it and just took it without a care in the world," he added with an amused chuckle.

"What? She owed Xavier and I a new Poké Ball!" Alexa explained in laughter. Xavier smiled as he examined his potential new Poké Ball.

"I can see why she chose this one, but..." Alexa drew her attention back to Xavier. "I think it matches my mane a lot better than it does a Pichu's colour scheme."

"Does that mean you approve?" Alexa asked.

"Sounds like it to me," Keenan laughed. Alexa smiled as she accepted the Poké Ball from Xavier.

"Well...here goes..." Alexa gently tapped Xavier's shoulder with the Luxury Ball's button, causing it to open abruptly as Xavier's entire body became engulfed in a red light; the Zoroark's form was soon sent into the Luxury Ball through the energy that had enveloped him. The Luxury Ball closed suddenly, the central button briefly flashing red once to indicate the successful capture. Alexa held the Luxury Ball close to her heart as she smiled warmly, relieved to know that her Zoroark was still officially hers. Keith walked behind her and lovingly held her from behind, nuzzling her cheek before kissing it softly. Hayden, Harvey and Hailey all dotingly held onto their respective partners as everyone began to realise...things were finally returning to normal.

 _To be concluded..._


	62. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

 _Adelina:_

Adelina slowly walked through the doors of the Nimbasa City Contest Hall. Looking around, she saw that very little about the interior had changed since the last time she was in the building; the portraits hanging on the magenta walls at the far end of the hall remained the same, the light pink floor beneath Adelina's heeled shoes was as shiny as it always was and the large front desk was still manned by four receptionists, all ladies. As Adelina approached the desk timidly, one of the ladies looked up at her and smiled at her, only to lose that smile as she watched the approaching Co-Ordinator in shock; she recognised Adelina, there was no doubt, but she was not only surprised by how timid – reluctant, even – Adelina looked, but at her modest attire! Instead of the usual questionable clothes she'd frequently wear, Adelina's clothes consisted of a fully buttoned-up white blouse, a black skirt that covered her knees and sensible-looking heeled shoes. Her hair, meanwhile, was still as bronze as ever, but it hung freely, and she wore small gold studs instead of her usual large loop earrings and absolutely no facial make-up whatsoever.

"M-Ms Cross! M-May I help you?" the receptionist asked shakily, putting on a nervous smile. Adelina didn't appear to be fazed with the lack of stern professionalism from the woman and merely sighed.

"Yes...I'd like to withdraw my participation in the new Nimbasa Contest," she requested quietly.

"Uh, y-yes, a-a-absolutely," the receptionist said timidly as she hastily began typing at the computer in front of her, hidden from Adelina's view behind the desk. "W-What is your reason?" the receptionist asked shyly.

"That would be the other reason I'm here," Adelina replied glumly. "If it is even possible, I-I wish to speak to the Contest Organiser."

"Oh? D-Do you have a complaint?" the receptionist asked hesitantly.

"No. It's...it's about Hailey Hawkstone's appeal from the last Contest..."

 _Hailey:_

"Okay, are you guys ready?!" Hailey asked excitedly. She was in her back yard with Colin, Peggy, who sat on Piper's back, and the twins; Peggy, Daniel and Daphne were out of their school uniforms and in much more comfortable attires. Roland and Rhonda sat next to their respective Trainers as the rest of the family watched Hailey with intent; her bleach blonde hair appeared to have been feathered and wore a light silver metallic prom dress with matching heeled sandals. Hailey's Cinccino looked up at her keenly.

"Show us what you've got, Honeybee," Colin said eagerly.

"All right, then," Hailey began as she looked down at her impatient Cinccino. "It's time, Brie!"

"Cino!" Brie flipped backwards and landed in a handstand; her long white tail slowly began to spin as water began to gather around it.

"Everyone, I present to you...our FIRST triple combo! Starting with a little Aqua Tail..." A pulse of water shot up into the air from Brie's rotating tail, which began to spin more rapidly as the spiral of water was fired into the air above her. "To give the Water Pulse more volume...and then..." Electricity began to cackle at the base of the Cinccino's tail, which immediately began to course all over the pulsing water; the sight of the small bolts of electricity dancing around the water impressed everyone, Peggy especially. "Thunder Wave to brighten everything up!"

"Oh, my days, Mum, that is AMAZING!" Daphne praised with complete delight.

"Better than Brie's attempt to juggle her own Seed Bomb," Daniel said in agreement.

"Cin-cinno," Brie muttered in corroboration.

"It's so pretty!" Peggy squealed in awe.

"Ti-ruuuh!"

"So, this is going to be your appeal for the new Contest next week?" Colin asked curiously. "You're going to win that round for sure!"

"At least qualify for the next one," Hailey laughed coyly as the combination faded and Brie hopped back onto her feet. "Whether or not it'll get the most points remains to be seen... As for the battle round...Flint's going to take care of that one if all goes well."

"It'll go swimmingly, honey," Colin said encouragingly. "I'm sure of it."

"Me, too, actually," Hailey said sunnily. "Ooh, I can't wait for this...!" Colin, Peggy and Daphne laughed at Hailey's over-abundance of excitement. Daniel, however, smiled lovingly. "And I can't wait for everyone to come back for the Contest! Hey, maybe Harvey will bring Naomi this time around!"

 _Harvey:_

"So, what's going on?" Troy asked as he returned to his lounge with a tray holding three identical mugs and a small tray of rounded biscuits in his hands. Troy placed the tray on the coffee table in front of the sofa and his parents just before taking one of the mugs of tea and sitting on one of the armchairs nearby. Harvey smiled proudly as he took the mug of peppermint tea in both hands.

"C'mon, sport, you know that your mother and I have been spending more time together," he laughed as Naomi took one of the biscuits and dunked it into her tea.

"That much is obvious," Troy chuckled as he saw his mother gleefully eating the soggy half of her biscuit. "But you said you had something to tell me?"

"Yep; we wanted you to be the first one to know before the rest of the family gets informed."

"Even though they'll probably see it coming a mile away. ...actually, you might have as well," Harvey laughed. "But anyway! Your mother and I are getting back together."

"Yep, you're right; I saw that coming miles away," Troy said cheekily.

"Don't act too happy about it, sweetheart," Naomi said playfully.

"Don't get me wrong, I'm happy for the pair of you, but I'm just a little too old for it to make me bounce up and down like a Spoink on happy pills," Troy laughed sheepishly. "But, yeah...I'm happy for you two."

"Thanks, sweetheart," Naomi said kindly.

"Are you going to tell Uncle Hayden and Aunt Hailey?" Troy wondered.

"Of course," Harvey nodded. "Although, I'm not sure how much more good news Hayden can take at the moment," he laughed. Naomi dunked half of her remaining biscuit half into her tea and quickly ate the soggy part before it dropped into the mug.

 _Hayden:_

"Yep, I'll see you on Wednesday," Hayden said to the phone he held against his ear. "Okay, bye." He pulled the phone from his ear and hung up the call. He sighed as he returned to his sofa, sitting next to Lily, who was watching as Roberta looked at Ian curiously. "Sorry about that, Dad; XCommunications again."

"You got the deal, what more do they want?" Ian wondered as he carefully examined Roberta's eyes. Keenan walked down the slightly spiralled staircase of the Violet City residence with Iara hanging from his shoulder as he headed straight for the refrigerator.

"Well, a place to set up shop, for starters," Hayden laughed. "The would-be store manager for the Goldenrod store's meeting up with me to choose where he wants the shop to go."

"That's good," Ian smiled. "As is Roberta's health, Lily."

"Thank you. She's only been with us for almost a week now, but-"

"Yeah, she seems happy enough already."

"Nido," Roberta happily nodded.

"I still think she should meet Nando, though," Keenan laughed as he removed a small bottle of milk from the fridge before closing it,

"Wait until your sister comes back first," Ian laughed, smiling at his grandson.

"That reminds me," Hayden sighed. Ian, Lily and Keenan looked at him in confusion. "I'm sorry you only found out about the recent happenings because of her..."

"Don't be so concerned, Hayden," Ian said kindly. "She told me about everything – Sinnoh included – because she wanted to. That being said, I'm happy that the light was at the end of Rock Tunnel." Keenan suddenly looked at Iara, carrying a playful smirk.

"So THAT'S where you got it from!" Iara sniggered at him.

"Now that I'm thinking about it, I hear Jollie finally evolved!" Ian said happily.

"She has," Lily confirmed. "She and Alexa were happier than we'd ever seen her, it was so touching to see!"

"It didn't help that she and Keith got back together just before Jollie evolved," Hayden added with a warm smile. "That light you were talking about was brighter than it could ever be..."

 _Alexa:_

A slender Raichu with a fringe over her aqua green headband stood on top of a cliff, looking down at the colourful town beneath her. A round amethyst hung from her neck and wore some sort of tube top over her flat chest as a Blaziken with an x-shaped scar on her beak and a Lucario that looked like he was part Furret walked over to the Raichu.

"We're home," the Raichu said simply.

"What do we do now?" the Blaziken asked timidly.

"Oh, for goodness' SAKE, Dixie...!" the Raichu complained as she spun around and looked up at her tallest ally. "We let everyone know we're back, what else?!"

"Think they're going to be ready to see the new you?" The hybrid Lucario wondered. The Raichu smirked as she drew her attention to the hilltop building that resembled the head of a Wigglytuff.

"They weren't ready for my first return, so what makes you think they'll be ready for this?"

"True," the Lucario laughed. "So...shall we?"

"Last one there's a rotten Exeggcute!" the Raichu yelled eagerly as she ran down the cliff, keeping her long whip-like tail away from her unusually large feet. Panicky, the Lucario and Blaziken hurried after her.

"Wait up, Sarah!" Dixie called. The Raichu laughed as the camera began to pan away from the trio, gradually shifting its focus to the sunset overlooking the entire town. Once the camera stayed in place, a title card appeared in the middle of the sky; the words "Pokémon Mystery Dungeon" were written in a slightly comical yellow-to-orange font with a light blue shadow, but the words "Times Beyond Darkness" were in a more ominous and almost sinister black and red font.

Many people exited the movie theatre, a chorus of amused laughter and mumbles of praise erupting from the crowd. Keith and Alexa walked out of the theatre by the time the exiting crowd was virtually non-existent, both with an arm wrapped around the other's waist; Alexa wore one of her Gracidea flower hair clips in her hair, clipping her left-hand bangs to the side of her head, a pale green casual rib bardot top, a pair of her navy blue jeans and her white slip-on trainers, while Keith wore his engraved dog tags over his black and light grey three-quarter sleeve raglan shirt, blue jeans and black plimsolls. Alexa looked up at Keith as they walked over to the quieter side of the premises, towards a balcony of some kind that overlooked the Unovan ocean.

"That was fun." Keith nodded.

"I didn't think I'd be so engaged, considering I haven't seen the prequel."

"It's nice they made it easy to understand for people who haven't seen it," Alexa complimented as she and Keith leaned against the red fence and looked across the serene ocean and the warming sunset in front of them. "I really had fun today, Keith...thank you."

"Sure. I had fun, too," Keith said sweetly as he nuzzled Alexa's cheek. He smiled contently as he watched the sunset before him. "Tell you what, though, things are going to be so much better once we get back to the Ranger Union." Alexa lost her smile as she looked at the ocean underneath her sadly.

"Actually...I might not be coming back..."

"What?" Keith looked at Alexa in shock. "Why?!" A quiet sigh from her caused him to feel tense. "I-It's not because of what I said, is it?"

"It is, but not in the way you're thinking of," Alexa replied as she looked up at him. He stared at her in complete bewilderment. "Ever since Operation Brighton finished, I've really been suffering so often that it can't be amounted to just a severe case of bad luck..." She stared at the horizon across her, still looking fairly glum. "Most of it being my own fault, so I wasn't a victim of circumstance like I was with Adelina..." Keith pitied her.

"Kincaid kidnapping you wasn't your-"

"That's not that I'm talking about; I'm talking about the things I could control – hitting Rhythmi and getting suspended, not letting Cain's antics get to me as they did, letting us follow Jordan to Cinnabar Island..."

"That one was my idea," Keith said worriedly. Alexa shook her head.

"My point is...my mental and emotional health were jeopardised more times than I care to remember after Operation Brighton. ...heck, my PHYSICAL health was at risk even BEFORE Operation Brighton..."

"So you wouldn't be coming back for health reasons?" Keith asked curiously. Alexa huffed a small laugh.

"In hindsight, I probably shouldn't have taken up such a physically demanding occupation with the metabolism I have," she muttered jokingly. "But, yeah...if I don't end up coming back as a Pokémon Ranger, it'll be for health reasons." All of a sudden, she looked up at Keith in a panic. "B-But that doesn't mean we wouldn't be able to see each other again, I-"

"I know that," Keith laughed. Alexa soon relaxed and smiled coyly.

"Sorry...I just don't want you to think I might end up abandoning you..." Keith smiled lovingly as he pulled both himself and Alexa away from the fence slightly as he looked into her eyes.

"Alexa, I appreciate the thought...but you really need to think about yourself; this is YOUR life we're talking about."

"I know...I just don't want you to think our days are numbered if I decide to not return to the Ranger Union..." Keith placed one hand on her shoulder and cupped her cheek in his other hand as he slightly tilted her head up to further establish eye contact.

"Sounds like you're still not sure."

"I'm not. My Uncle Harvey did suggest I go travelling again like I did when I first met Phoenix, but...I don't know..."

"Look, just stay on your leave of absence until you're able to make your decision," Keith said generously. "But, no matter what you decide to do, I'll support you." Alexa smiled sweetly at him.

"Thanks...Treasure."

"Uh?" Keith was baffled.

"You call me Kitten...it's only fair I have something to call you... Treasure sounds fitting, don't you think?" Keith stared at her in wonder before smiling caringly.

"That makes me the kitten's treasure...I can get used to that. Thanks, Kitten."

"Sure thing...Treasure..." She drew her face closer to Keith's as she planted her lips onto his. Keith ran an arm down her back and held onto her lovingly as she began to wrap her arms around the back of his neck. As they shared such a romantic kiss, a large Mantine soared from the ocean and dived back into the water after twirling in the air.

 _~ Fin._


End file.
